It Doesn't Always Go According To Plan
by SarahBelikova
Summary: Rose and Dimitri can't deny themselves from each other anymore. It's to hell with graduation and waiting to be together. There's no time like the present. When an unexpected surprise is bestowed on the couple, Rose and Dimitri's plans for the future are changed. Their seemingly perfect life now has more bumps in the road as they soon realize it doesn't always go according to plan.
1. Chapter 1

I was feeling extremely content, more than I have ever been in a long time. I was curled up next to the love of my life and it was like we couldn't get any closer. Literally, it was skin on skin contact. We had just finished making love and a post sex glow was written all over my face and I was smiling like the Cheshire cat. Or at least that's how I thought I looked. I unconsciously cuddled closer, wanting to feel the warmth of Dimitri's body since I had a bit of a chill remembering where we were. In Tasha's cabin. My mind flew back to just a couple hours ago…

_Christian, Eddie, Adrian and I were having lunch in the cafeteria. Lissa had told me earlier that she would join us later because she had something to do. She wouldn't tell me what, so I tried snooping, pushing past the mental barriers she put up between our bond. I guess she finally learned how to do it since this was a new development._

_I suddenly got this burst of pain through my arm via my skull. It was twisting at odd angles and hurting so badly I wanted to cry out. And that was saying something because Rose Hathaway did not cry out for anything, no matter how petty it was. The only time I can remember breaking down was right after Spokane, which that was pure emotionally. I mean come on; I just watched one of my best friend's become paralyzed. _

_Off to the back of my mind I faintly heard Adrian call out my name. It must have been serious because he said Rose instead of lil' dhampir. I didn't register any of it because of the excruciating burning sensation that seemed to consume me. It must have gone on for a couple minutes, then all I felt was rage and anger. In my mind, black coils of darkness were surrounding my brain, tightening like a leash on a dog. I was aware of hands on my shoulders, shaking violently, like they were trying to wake me up from whatever nightmare I seemed to be having. _

_I felt this anger with an intensity coming from the bond. Dark magic coming from Lissa's end. I tried pushing through, making my head like there was no tomorrow. I was enraged with what I saw. _

_Jesse and his goons were laughing and taunting Lissa on, while Ralf burned her with his elemental fire magic. That woke me up like a cold splash of water to the face, and pulled me out of her head. I was disoriented for a couple of seconds and didn't remember where I was. When I finally snapped out of it, I looked up to see three faces looking down on me. Apparently I must have fallen off of the cafeteria bench in my fit. _

_"Get out of my way, now!" I yelled at the closest person to me which happened to be Christian. He stayed frozen, looking down at me with a concerned look on his face. Until I screamed, "something's wrong with Lissa, get out of my way now, Pyro." _

_His face instantly contorted into a look of worry and out of the corner of my right eye, I could see Eddie looking panicked and to the left Adrian looking at me weirdly. I had no time for his antics, but I was going to find out later. _

_Using Christian, I pulled myself up, and in the process making him stumble forward. I raced out of the cafeteria trying to remember where Lissa was because there was no chance I was risking going back in her head. Once I remembered, I raced to the courtyard. Lissa was standing with Jesse and Ralf on the ground, twisting and rolling in pain and feared looks on their faces. I approached Lissa quickly but calmly. _

_Once I reached her, she didn't sound like herself when she spoke to me. "They're seeing their worst fears. Haunting them to the point where it hurts so much they can't breathe."_

_"Liss, stop it. This isn't you," I said calmly, trying to get her to release her magic._

_"Oh, but Rose, isn't it me? It's just a side I kept hidden for a very long time. No one knew it was there. They're paying, for torturing me. See the whole point of this 'meeting' I had to go to was an invitation to a group called the Mana. You had to be able to resist torture with just speaking. You had to be able to _tell_ your torturers to stop," Lissa looked at the boys on the ground._

_"It was compulsion all along. You had to compel them to stop. I guess this makes me their new leader after all." She laughed hysterically and a look of malevolence was written all over her usually angelic face. _

_"The things they did to me. You wouldn't believe it."_

I think I could, honey, I was in your head right there with you,_ I thought to myself._

_"They need to pay. They need to feel how I felt!" Lissa screamed. _

_Time to save the day. I focused on the darkness swirling around in Lissa's head and imagined myself as a vacuum cleaner, sucking it all out. _

_Then it was in me. _

_I could feel it getting blacker and blacker, darker and darker. Suddenly I turned on Jesse and used some magic of my own. I started beating the shit out of him, using him as my personal punching bag. And then I felt two strong big muscled arms wrap around me and pull me away from assaulting Jesse._

"_Let me go! I have to kill him. He has to pay for what he did to Lissa!" The two arms hoisted me up and pulled me over his shoulder. I started pounding on his back. When I finally realized it wouldn't make him put me down I relented. Sensing the change, he put me down on a bed and I looked into the eyes of my mentor._

"_Roza fight through this. You can fight it. You're strong Roza, fight it!" I was sobbing uncontrollably and finally it felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders._

"_Roza, you are so so strong. I knew you could fight it. It's one of the many reasons why I love you," I looked up at Dimitri. And I knew I shouldn't be saying what I'm saying next but I couldn't stop the words from coming out of my mouth._

"_Oh my God Dimitri. It was so scary. I…I didn't know what was happening to me. I just felt this uncontrollable force take over my body. I…I…I was only able to get through this because you were with me. I love you too and it's just…just so much it makes it hard to breathe. Sometimes it feels like I'm being smothered," I said while the sobs racked through my body, Dimitri never letting me go. _

"_And…," he cut me off with a fierce kiss. A kiss that said love you back, and I'm never going to let you go. He pressed his soft as silk lips against mine in a display of love and passion. Lips moved in sync and when I reached my tongue out and traced it along the seam of his lips, begging for entrance into his mouth. He gladly answered and the fight for dominance began._

_I wasn't giving up easily. I started placing butterfly kisses to the skin of his neck while one hand held firmly the nape of his neck and the other one dug into his shoulder. _

"_Roza, we can't…" he didn't sound too sure of himself. _

"_I know."_

_All the hidden pent up emotions, ached for a release. Nothing more was said as he slid his hands underneath my top and started to draw patterns on my stomach applying the faintest amount of pressure with his fingertips. Once or twice his fingers brushed the bottom of my bra and he looked up at me as a sign of confirmation that I really wanted to do what was going to happen. I nodded yes and he pulled off my top in one swift motion. Soon the rest of my clothes and his joined the heap on the floor as we began kissing furiously again. Dimitri gently laid us down on the bed and gave me a complete once over. _

_"You are so beautiful. So beautiful that it hurts me," he said with as much emotion as he could muster in his voice. _

_I cried out in ecstasy as when the moment of truth came. I wrapped my legs around his waist causing him to go deeper. We both reached our peaks at the same time and it was pure bliss._ _He collapsed beside me with his face in the crook of my neck. My hand stroked his soft as feather hair and the other traced patterns into his arm. _

_This moment was absolutely perfect and it felt as if nothing could ruin it. I was just dreading the time when I knew we had to get up, go our ways and pretend this didn't happen. I decided I wouldn't let those thoughts interrupt what precious time we had together, in this moment. _

_Just when I thought the moment couldn't get any better I heard Dimitri whisper, "I love you Roza. Much more than I ever thought I would." It was just so sweet and I swear a stray tear leaked from my eye. I couldn't help but say it back. _

"_I love you too Dimitri. More than I've ever loved anyone else. You were my first and I want you to be my last and everything," I said in the loudest voice I dared say it in. Dimitri's eyes met mine and spoke emotions for miles. _

"_Roza I'm so honored I was your first. I want to be your last and everything and so much more. Just like I hope you'll be mine."_

And now we were here, laying in this perfect dream of ours, which I hoped would live on for eternity. But I knew nothing this perfect always goes according to plan.

We were soon interrupted by the ringing of Dimitri's phone. He reached over to the bedside table to retrieve it. Answering it, he put it on speaker phone on so I could hear. I just realized he thought of me now as his equal, if he ever did. He trusted me now with this part of his life. What we had just done had brought us closer in more ways than one, and nothing would ever be a kept secret between us.

I was so lucky to have found him, or rather he found me.

I was pulled from my thoughts when I heard the caller whom I recognized as Alberta, say, "Belikov, we need you to report to headquarters. There's an urgent matter at hand. A discovery has just been made."

Her voice was hard, indicating that something wasn't right, and some serious shit was about to go down. I just hope it wasn't us.


	2. Chapter 2

_Previously;  
"Her voice was hard something wasn't right, and some serious shit was about to go down. I just hoped it wasn't us._

Dimitri and I shared a look before getting up and dressing. It conveyed a million messages, but right now, all I could focus on was wondering if we'd been caught. It wasn't easy getting dressed because both of us kept stopping to place a chaste, or not so chaste, kiss on the other's lips. We eventually got out of the cabin in a timely manner and we raced down to headquarters. I wasn't too sure I was supposed to go in, but I decided to keep my mouth shut for once. Alberta met us at the door with a hard look on her face, making the chance of me reading any emotion of hers void. I quickly snuck a glance to Dimitri's face, and as usual, his own mask was in place.

"Good you're here, and I see you brought Rose. Why?" She asked.

So many things were going through my head; the main thought was I couldn't lose Dimitri if we were found out. I was still in my day dream state, but luckily for me, Dimitri was quick on his feet and gave Alberta a swift response.

"Rose and I were just doing some training. I assume you have heard what happened in the courtyard with her, the Princess, and Mr. Zeklos?" She nodded, and Dimitri took this as the go ahead to continue. "Well as Rose's mentor, over the past couple months I have gotten to know her really well." He wasn't far off from the truth. The things we've just done, no one else has gotten to know me better than that.

"I have learned that Rose often takes her anger out in the form of physical violence. Rose is strong enough that if I allow her to go to the gym that she would, break, for a lack of a better word, the equipment she would use. Not to mention when she calmed down from the Princess's magic, she wouldn't have wanted anyone to see her breakdown like that. So I took her out behind the old guarding post cabins and engaged in combat with her. During our spar, you called and I didn't want to leave her behind for all sorts of trouble she might get in if there wasn't a figure of authority there to watch her."

"I see," Alberta looked at Dimitri for a couple seconds and then she turned to me. Keeping a brave face on, I tried not to waver under her stare by returning it equally as cold, giving away no indication that Dimitri was lying. Well not exactly lying, but stretching the truth as far as it would reach.

"And you can confirm this, Rose?" Alberta asked me. I gave a swift nod. It was hard to keep things from Alberta. She was like the mother I never had while growing up at the Academy. "Nothing to add?"

I gave another swift nod and for good measure added a "No ma'am".

Opening the doorway, she turned away and started walking into headquarters, expecting us to follow but not before giving us a knowing look and smile. I started to get a little antsy. Did Alberta know? Was our cover not believable? Would she rat us out if she did know? My hands were shaking and I didn't even realize it until Dimitri put one of his over mine. I calmed down at the warmth radiating from his hand. I was amazed that even the smallest of touches could create spark in my body and ignite my soul on fire.

We walked further down until we reached a room where a large oval shaped table was situated in the middle of the room. It seated about twenty and at one end of the table was a 100" flat screen television hung on the wall. Around the table were a bunch of sofas, a range of one to three seaters. The room wasn't so bad.

Most of the guardians that patrolled the high school and the upper grades were seated in the room. Those I recognized were Stan, who's face instantly drew into a scowl as soon as he saw me, Celeste, Guardian Chase, Emil, Jean, Yuri, and of course, Alberta.

Alberta sat at the head of the table facing the flat screen and the rest of the guardians took seats around her or on the couches. I remained standing. I didn't know what to do, so I was just stood there, rocking back and forth on my heels, moving slightly into a corner.

Stan apparently decided to make my presence known to those who hadn't seen me and had taken the opportunity to embarrass me. "Alberta why is a novice here? And Hathaway at that! These meetings are for guardians only. If we wanted to broadcast them, why not hold an assembly for the novices and why not even throw in the Moroi! Like this subject isn't delicate enough," his face started getting red from the lack of oxygen he used in order to yell his nonsense. "Everyone knows Hathaway and her big mouth. It's just a matter of time before the whole school knows what's going to go on!"

When he was finished, Stan's his face returned to its normal colour and Dimitri who had opted to stand beside me, started shaking with rage. I wanted to put my hands over to calm him down like he calmed me down earlier, but I knew then our cover would be blown and our relationship would be exposed as being more than a mentor student one.

"Put a sock in it, Alto! Rose is capable of keeping quiet. Alberta had no problem with letting her in, so I suggest you be quiet and don't dare talk to my student like that again." Dimitri's eyes narrowed at Stan and his voice turned menacingly low.

Alberta turned to Stan and said, "Guardian Alto, there is no need for that here! Rose is perfectly capable of knowing the situation and when to keep it a secret as Dimitri has stated. I let Rose in because I thought she could benefit from it. She's already above all other novices in the Academy and I would let her graduate earlier than she should. Why Stan, she's already made one more kill while still in her education, than you in all of your fifteen years as a promised guardian. Are you questioning my authority as head guardian?"

Stan looked outraged. "No, Alberta, I was just making sure there's no worry about the safety and concern about the Academy and its students and faculties." He said quickly, stumbling over some of his words.

I let out a small chuckle but quickly regained my composure when Stand sent me a glare that could've sent me six feet under. Seeing this as a chance for retaliation without the consequences, I sent my best face of innocence his way.

"Well, thank you for your concern, Guardian Alto, but it really is none of your concern. It's mine and if it was yours then you would have been made Head Guardian." Alberta told him, asking me through her eyes to not mess up. It took all of my self-control not to bust out laughing at Alberta's comment and at a now thoroughly embarrassed Stan. Even Dimitri had a little smile on his face; it was so tiny that only I could see it.

No more was said as the attention returned to Alberta when she began talking. "As everyone here knows, there have been recent Strigoi attacks along the border of Montana and Pennsylvania, dangerously close to Court. As you know this is highly confidential between guardians only, not even the queen herself has been informed.

We can't have everyone is worrying. When chaos breaks loose among our kind, it is never good. We have come to a conclusion that the high fatality numbers couldn't have been without the Strigoi working together. Recent attacks on a city, housing fifteen Moroi and 20 guardians living amongst humans, have us thinking that at least fifteen Strigoi have banded together for this attack. 5 guardians were killed along with two Moroi and the rest recovering. All known Strigoi have been exterminated. The current location is still undetermined to Vladimir guardians but one of the guardians from the attack has managed to get a report to Court."

Alberta stopped and looked around the room, waiting until the information sunk in before continuing. "Court guardians have discovered where a possible Strigoi hideout location is, and they were generous enough to let some of the academies privy to this information. St. Basil's and Windsor have been notified as well as us.

Unfortunately, the Royal Court does not have enough resources to go ahead and try to eliminate this threat. They have asked each academy provide 15 guardians towards to mission to reinforce their numbers. These fifteen guardians from each of the three institutes will accompany the thirty guardians from Court for a total of seventy five.

I haven't gotten specific orders as to who must leave so I am holding it open. There will be a sign up sheet outside the headquarters door tomorrow morning at five o' clock. If you wish to join this expectation, I urge you too, but until we get further instructions I will not be pushing anyone to go. Understood?" Alberta scanned the room and I feel my heart beating out of my chest. I feared to think of what Dimitri might do.

A large and logical part of me knew Dimitri would do it, that's just the kind of man he was. He always did the right thing. It's a large part of who he was and I knew that he knew himself that he would do it in a heartbeat.

And you could call me selfish, but now that I had Dimitri, I don't want him to ever leave, or ever give me up. I wanted him to put me first, not the Moroi, and a part of me hoped he would choose me first this time.

When Alberta spoke next, she indirectly spoke to Dimitri, "choose what you want very wisely."

To say I was shocked would be an understatement, and I wasn't even Dimitri, whom she was clearly speaking to. Alberta's attention went to some papers on her desk, but not before giving Dimitri and I a knowing look. Had she found out about us? Was our story not believable? Did Dimitri accidentally give something away? My earlier worries came rushing back.

"Meeting dismissed," Alberta said while rifling through her papers. "Belikov, stay back. I want to talk to you." And my worries just became a whole lot worse. My palms were sweating as everyone filed out the room, while Dimitri and I stood firmly where we were the whole meeting.

Dimitri turned to look at me. I lifted my eyes to meet his and in the process craning my neck. The worry and concern was evident in my eyes and Dimitri picked up on it. As I knew he would, nothing I do ever got past him. "Roza, don't worry. I'll talk to her quickly and all this will be over. I doubt she knows anything about us. Go find Lissa; I'm sure you want to speak to her about our current situation. I'll meet you in your room after hours. Leave the door unlocked." He whispered the last part and moved toward the adjoining room where Alberta was.

Sitting on a bench after I left headquarters, my mind and body tried to calm themselves of the anxiety coursing through my veins. Once I was feeling a bit better I concentrated until I felt the familiar _whoosh _and I was seeing the world through Lissa's eyes. She was in the library doing homework for advanced calculus. Ugh, it looked like a whole different language to me, smart people. I was just fine taking my dumb class math. It was simple and easy. And who needs math when all I'm going to do is guarding, protecting and fighting for a living.

I decided to pull out now and go to her now because Sparky wasn't there and he was no doubt going to meet her later in the church attic. It gave me shivers just thinking about it. I've seen too much of him than I would ever like to. I pulled back into my own head and marveled at how easy it was getting to become my _own_ person again. I quickly made my way across the dhampir dorms and over to the library.

I snuck up on Lissa using my awesome ninja skills and suffice enough to say that I scared the living hell out of her, getting us a couple glares from the surrounding students and librarians. "Oh my God Rose. You scared me."

I snickered. "Yes, I believe that was the general point."

"It wasn't funny, I almost had a heart attack," Lissa said, trying to look outraged but failing miserably.

"I beg to differ. It was quite funny. Yeah, you probably wouldn't have lasted long with that weak Moroi heart of yours so you should be lucky I stopped while I was at it or you'd be long gone by now," I retorted while Lissa shot me a face. I just shrugged and asked her what I've been wanting to since Dimitri told me to. "You busy?"

"Not really. Just trying to beat some calculus questions but it looks like they're winning. What's up?"

"See if you just took dumb math like me then you wouldn't have this problem," She turned and gave me an exasperated look. "I need to talk to you, it's important." I ask answering her question.

I feel a mixture of emotions coming from her side of the bond. Mainly curiosity and happiness that I was coming to talk to her without trying to work whatever problem out I had myself, which she was assuming I had. And I guess you could call it that, sort of.

"Silly girl, I'll always come and talk to you. Even if it's in my own time but I'll always tell you what's bugging me. We're sisters right? Deeper than blood." Lissa smiled and nodded.

"Always no shoot your question at me. Target ready." Whenever Lissa tried to be funny, she failed, miserably and I couldn't help but laugh at her attempt at a joke. "What?" She asked, in perfect mock hurt.

"Just don't, Lissa. Stick to the books and helping people in need. And being that loving caring person. Can we go somewhere private, like your room?" I could feel so much curiosity coming through the bond, it was suffocating.

"Sure." We walked out of the library arm in arm to her room in comfortable silence. When she opened the door I immediately jumped on to her bed and buried my face in her pillow, dreading telling her about the glorious 'tale' I called Dimitri.

She put her books on her desk and sat with her legs crossed on the end of her bed, back towards the end board and foot posts. I sat up and took a similar position against her headboard. She waited patiently for me to begin. I took a deep breath, exhaled loudly and started.

"Liss, I'm in love with Dimitri."


	3. Chapter 3

_Previously: _

_She put her books on her desk and sat with her legs crossed on the end of her bed, back towards the end board and foot posts. I sat up and took a similar position against her headboard. She waited patiently for me to begin. I took a deep breath, exhaled loudly and started._

_"Liss, I'm in love with Dimitri."_

I waited for her to say something, anything. Some sort of indication that she heard me but I got nothing. She remained quiet with an impassive look written on her face. After a couple of minutes of her studying me, and my fidgeting hands, I started to worry. So, I dived into Lissa's head.

I found a lot of confusion and anger coming from the bond and I was surprised I didn't feel it radiating of me in those earlier moments. I was expecting these to come from Lissa when I told her but it still came as a shock. I was also I bit confused as to why I feel little parts of happiness and joy. I was pulled out when I finally heard her speak, and though I was wishing for her to break the silence, I couldn't help feeling small and hopeless.

"Rose," she began. I didn't like the tone she was using. It wasn't exactly cold but soft and hard. She said my name slowly, holding so much power that made my eyes snap to hers as I held a blank look on my face. After a few moments she started to speak again.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She was mad, anger lacing her every word. "Why would you hide something so big like this from me? I thought you would tell me everything. Oh that's right you're always too busy to spend time with me," pausing she took a deep breath, "soul sisters, we run deeper than blood. All that was a load of crap, wasn't it?"

By this point my jaw was hard, eyes narrowed and nose flared. I was beyond pissed. How dare she accuse me of not spending any time with her? How dare her, when Christian and her have been in the church attic every night getting it on for the past month. I haven't gotten any sleep because her emotions were so strong I kept getting sucked into seeing Christian's pasty ass.

"How dare you accuse me of ignoring you?! Do you know how long I've been dying to tell you this? Do you know how much it was killing me keeping my biggest secret from my best friend? I have had training every single morning and afternoon and you know I can't get out of those no matter how hard I have tried. And believe me, I have. I kept looking for an opening for the past month but I didn't know I had to book an appointment. Allow me to book in advance as seeing Christian has taken all your nights, which also happens to be the only time I'm free. Sorry if my best friend thinks her boyfriend is only one for her." I was breathing heavily when I finished saying that but I wasn't done.

Lissa's face fell slack and she looked like wanted to cry. She opened her mouth to say something but I held my hand up to stop her. I took a deep breath to calm my own breathing before I said the last part. "The only reason I got the chance to talk to you today was because Alberta called Dimitri and I into headquarters where we were instantly submerged into a meeting with twenty other guardians about Court issues. No, I can't get into that before you ask, I swore to Alberta and besides if it does get out Stan will have my ass. Dimitri cancelled training after we were done so I could come find you, and talk to you because he saw how much I was tearing up about it." I finished with a whisper on the last line. I hung my head, my energy completely drained.

I looked up and saw that Lissa had silent tears streaming down her face. "Rose, I'm so so sorry. I didn't know. I genuinely didn't think I was spending so much time with Christian and none with you. I promise that starting from now a lot is going to change. You are my first priority and I forgot that. This is not unacceptable. You can't ever forget your family. I don't expect you to forgive me or to tell me any more details but just know that I'm really sorry."

"Oh, Lissa," It broke my heart seeing her like this. "Come here. It's not your fault," I pulled her into a hug and stroked her hair, trying to comfort her. "Not entirely."

"God, I feel so bad. How could I not know I was missing your presence?"

"Ssh, calm down. It's okay, it's all in the past now. I forgive you and it's not like I put a lot of effort into to making more time for us. Just promise that we won't go longer than I day without speaking to each other. And that we tell each other everything now and right away. No putting it off."

To say that her nodding was overly enthusiastic would be an understatement. She kept saying I promise all over again until I was forced to put my hand over her mouth until she stopped. I didn't remove my hand as I asked her, "are you going to keep quiet now so I can tell you the entire story? Give a nod yes." She moved her head up and down. "I'm going to uncover your mouth now. One word and I'm stopping. I mean it." I started to move my hand away slowly.

"I'm in love with Dimitri, and he's in love with me." Her eyes went wide. I ignored her and kept speaking. "I'm going to tell you everything from the beginning so you might want to get comfortable. It's a long story." She moved around a little on the bed and when she stopped I began.

"Well, you know that when Dimitri brought us back to the Academy, Kirova was going to kick me out. I guess I just started to develop a little crush on him after he started mentoring me. At the time it was nothing serious, but I remember thinking that I couldn't help but fall under his spell with that to die for accent and the extreme level of hotness.

A couple days after we got back, Jesse kept pestering me to hang out with him and eventually I gave in. That night we snuck up to the lounge on the fourth floor and we started making out, you know, Jesse stuff. We were like that for a while until the door suddenly burst open and the weight on top of me disappeared. I opened my eyes to find Jesse pinned to the wall, a very tall man holding him by the shirt.

When he stormed in I knew why Mason had called him a god, because in that moment he looked god-like. He spoke in a low calculating voice in Jesse's ear then let him go, and Jesse scurried out like the rat he is. Then Dimitri eyes turned to me. I was only in my jeans and black bra." I paused and saw Lissa's eyes bug out of her head. Her mouth dropped but I narrowed my eyes at her and she quickly regained her composure and closed it.

"So there he was checking me out, or so I thought when I said 'See something you like, comrade?'. He scowled at me, throwing me my shirt and pulling me out of my daydreams. When I was fully clothed again, we got into a very heated discussion about me throwing myself around and acting like a bloodwhore."

"He wouldn't." I heard her voice and gave her a glare. "Eek," she said, realizing her mistake. "Please go on. I'm sorry. I wouldn't do that again, promise. It's just that's hard to believe that he said that." I thought so too. Now looking back on it, he was telling me in my best interests. He wanted to let me know ahead of time that I was unconsciously creating a reputation for myself. I decided to let it go and continue.

"I didn't go without defending myself. At the end he offered for us to pick up more training sessions so I could learn how to fight, seeing as our current ones resulted in only running. The more time I spent with him the harder I fell. I soon realized that it wasn't some stupid school girl crush and I really cared a lot for him.

The night of the dance, I saw your kidnapping through the bond and immediately rushed to Dimitri's room because I knew he would believe me. What I didn't know was that the necklace Victor gave me was laced with strong compulsion. I know you're probably thinking that isn't possible, but Victor is very skilled and strong in compulsion. Higher than your average Moroi who isn't specialized in spirit. He put a lust spell that made Dimitri and I act accordingly.

You can only guess what happened. We didn't do it but we came pretty close. When Dimitri took off my necklace, among other things, it was a huge wake up call. Victor had wanted to distract us and he did one hell of a job by playing on our feelings.

I remembered you and we immediately raced to get you and we succeeded obviously. After that night, my feelings for Dimitri only intensified to another level and when we talked about what happened, he denied his own and told me what we did was wrong and it would never happen again. I refused to report him when he told me that I should. When they didn't go away, I went down to the holding cells to see Victor about cutting off the spell completely. He said the compulsion had already burned out and that both parties had to be initially interested in each other for it to work.

Natalie then came in and I saw that she had turned Strigoi. She told me that she had done it willingly so she could break daddy out of prison. She tossed me around like a rag doll for a bit until Dimitri stealthily staked her like death in a duster. I was falling unconscious so he picked me up and was taking me to the clinic when I asked him again about what Victor told me. He said that he had denied it and he truly did have feelings for me. He also told me it could never happen. He said it was partly because he was my mentor and seven years my senior, but we wouldn't be able to properly guard you when we were so focused on each other. He said that if he let himself love me then he wouldn't throw himself in front of you, but me."

I looked up at Lissa, who was itching to say something.

"Spit it out, I now you have something to say,"

"Oh Rose, I'm so sorry. It's all my fault that you couldn't be together." She exclaimed.

"Lissa, no it's not. Besides, we can't worry about each other because _they come first._ The Moroi, you. We were taught that from a young age. It's alright."

"No it's not. You put your life on the line for mine. I shouldn't take away your happiness too."

"Lissa, just don't. And who says I'm not happy?" I shushed her and continued telling the rest of the tale.

"We avoided each other in that way while we were training and two weeks before we went to Idaho for Christmas break, I kissed him in the gym just after we'd finished sparring. The pent up feelings were too much so I kissed him, and he kissed me back. But as soon as it began it stopped. He pushed me away and told me to never do that again. Later that afternoon, a note I received for Dimitri informed me that he had cancelled training for the next two weeks.

On the ski trip, I was seeing red whenever he was with Tasha because when I kept thinking that it should be me he was supposed to be with. I know it was silly of me, but I couldn't help but have that mindset. Anyways, when my mom told me that Tasha had offered Dimitri a chance to be her guardian and the father of her kids, it became the worst Christmas ever. It was part of the reason I was acting all bitchy whenever I talked to her.

I needed something to get my mind off Dimitri, and Mason was right there. A few days earlier, Dimitri had divulged the Strigoi whereabouts in Spokane and in the heat of the moment when I saw Dimitri holding hands with Tasha all I saw was green and I told Mason what Dimitri had told me. A way of revenge I guess."

I stopped knowing that the next part would be hard for me.

"Then I found out Mason, Eddie, and Mia had left to hunt down the Strigoi. All I knew was that I had to go after them before they got hurt and I couldn't tell the guardians because they would get into more trouble. Now I wish I had because Mason wouldn't have hurt so much from what happened as he did." I was breathing heavily trying to calm myself down and sensing my distress Lissa pulled me into a hug and kept me there waiting for me to continue.

"As you know Christian came along and we were off. We found them but when we about to come back, we got lost and were captured by humans working with the Strigoi. All five of us were held captive and you know the rest of the story from there.

When we came back Dimitri told me at one of our training sessions that he couldn't take Tasha's offer because his heart belonged somewhere else, to me. But nothing could happen because we didn't matter, the dhampirs.

Then Victor's trial came up, and Dimitri and I went to talk to him down in the holding cells at Court. Dimitri threatened Victor with death if he hurt my reputation or brought me down in any way. What we weren't expecting that Victor brought up the whole 'statuary rape'."

"So it was true?" Lissa looked at me, and I nodded.

"The whole Jesse incident was what finally brought us together. After cleaning me up, Dimitri told me how strong I was for pulling through the darkness and that was one of the reasons why he loved me. I whispered similar feelings and we didn't stop. We just acted with our hearts and it honestly has been the best decision I have ever made so far. Of course we can't just shout from rooftops that we're in love, we have to keep it on the down low until after graduation.

Then we're going to move in together at Court and Dimitri's going to ask if he can guard Christian. And no, it's not you Lissa, because I know what you're thinking," I pointed to my head indicating the bond. "It's just a conflict of interest and we want the best of the best protection for you and that can't happen when Dimitri and I are together. I hope you'll understand that words can't describe how much that his is the one thing I've wanted my entire life. I hope you'll let us have it."

Lissa took my hands into hers and smiled broadly, fangs and all. "Of course Rose, you're my sister and you're finally in love. How can I take that away from you when I know what it feels like? I wouldn't ever want to be separated from Chris; he's my other half, my soul mate. And now you have that. Love is such a wonderful thing and everyone should be able to experience it, so who am I to take it away from you? I'm so happy you finally found someone! This is all so exciting!"

I laughed out of joy when Lissa finished. I can't believe I was hearing this, although I should have known. Lissa is a hopeless romantic and I can't say that Dimitri isn't turning me into one too. I was so happy she gave us her blessing. I was ecstatic, over the moon. I would finally be able to have the one thing I wanted the most, with no limitations. After graduation I would be free, able to choose who I loved without a care. No one could take it away from me.

I looked up at Lissa's clock on her wall and saw that it was nearing curfew. I quickly said goodbye to Liss, making arrangements for our time together tomorrow. I walked back to my own room, so happy I was almost skipping.

But it was soon diminished when I bumped into Adrian. "Lil' Dhampir, what a surprise!"

"Not really a surprise when you're standing in the dhampir dorms. What, preying on girls? Hoping to get a good night in bed?"

"Never. There's only one dhampir for me and I'm looking straight at her." He said with a smirk written on his lips. Ah Adrian. There you are.

"Well sorry, it's never going to happen so keep dreaming,"

"Well lil' dhampir, it just might." He said.

"Adrian I don't have time for this. I got to go."

"Cradle robber?"

"What?"

"Is he the one who's making you leave so quickly?" Adrian asked, annoyed.

"No, he's not doing anything and frankly it's none of your business so if you don't mind, please get out of my way." He complied and stepped back looking at me weirdly. I tried to muster as much annoyance as I could into my body. He gave me a bow with a swept hand and I walked ran to my dorm.

I decided to take a shower and brush my teeth and hair before Dimitri came by. Standing in just a towel, I was brushing my teeth when I heard a knock on the door.

"Just now," I yelled but came out as _jush now._ I heard the door open after a little while longer. I walked out, fully prepared to deal with a dorm matron or another novice about waiting until I answer before they barged in.

What I was not prepared was to come face to face with Dimitri.

**A/N: So a bit of a cliff hanger. Thank you to everyone who put this story on their alerts and favourites list. You don't know how much that means. Thank you to the reviewers who reviewed for the last two chapters. **

**Thank you!**


	4. Chapter 4

_Previously;_

_What I was not prepared was to come face to face with Dimitri. _

DPOV

After Alberta asked for me, I sent Rose out to go d talk to Lissa because I've see how Rose is breaking up over not being able to tell her best friend. I remembered when I was like that, before Ivan died. We were best friends since we met in third grade. I still remembered the phone call I received from his mother.

_I was lying on my bed, reading the new western I'd gotten from Ivan for my twentieth birthday. Later that day we were supposed to go out clubbing. Ivan's idea. If it was up to me, I'd be staying home hanging out with him and our friends. So I was a bit antisocial, but that was me right?_

_My phone on my bedside table rang and I looked down at the caller ID to see it was Ivan's mother. I wondered why she was calling me; she never did, unless something was wrong with Ivan or his younger brother. By the fifth ring I was getting worried so I picked up. Ivan's mom was crying hysterically and sobbing uncontrollably._

_"Mrs. Zeklos, please calm down and tell me what's wrong," I said, softly._

"_He's gone, my baby's gone. Why? Why?"_

_I was borderline worried and frantic now._

_"Mrs. Zeklos, what do you mean gone and who?"_

_"Oh Dimitri, my poor baby. Poor Ivan robbed of life from those nasty Strigoi. I miss him. Why did he have to go so early, he had a bright future ahead of him…"_

_My heart plummeted and my face fell slack. It couldn't be. I almost dropped the phone but Mrs. Zeklos' sobbing pulled me back and I got a grip. "Mrs. Zeklos, what do you mean gone?"_

"_Oh Dimitri, they found him in an alley way with bite marks all over his snapped neck. It can't be. He was my baby, he can't be gone," she was hiccupping with every sob. _

"_Mrs. Zeklos, I'll be right over. Please wait for me and don't do anything rash. Stay on the phone with me. I will be there before you know it." I raced out of the house almost breaking down the doors in the process all the while I finally let my own tears shed. Falling freely down my face. _

I couldn't rob Rose and Lissa of that chance, so I let her go and followed Alberta into her office. "Belikov. Sit down, we need to talk." I took a seat in front of the desk while Alberta stood behind looking at me. "Now is there anything you would like to tell me? Anything at all?" I shook my head no. "Belikov are you going to go on this assignment?" I shook my head no again. She stared at me long and hard. I didn't falter once under her gaze and kept my guardian mask on, as Rose liked to call it.

"Belikov, what's going on between you and Rose? It sure is a hell lot more that student and mentor."

I was faced with a choice. I could either tell her about us, no doubt that she already knows or keep it a secret and let it come bite me back in the butt in the long run. It could damage my reputation, more importantly Rose's. So the choice was pretty clear to me.

"Alberta, Rose and I are in love. We tried denying our feelings but they got to be so much that we couldn't. It was smothering us. I love her so much and I'd never let anything come to harm her. I never thought I'd fall like this, especially for my student. I just couldn't help it. She makes me want to better. She's my light when I'm dark, she's my pick me up when I'm feeling down. She's the only one who can bring a smile to my face with just a glance in her direction. She's the one for me. And I have never felt so sure about anything in my life... Please don't expel her for something she had no control over. If you have to fire me, then fire me, but don't let anything hurt her or her reputation. She's going to be one hell of a guardian, and I don't want anything to interfere with that. She deserves only the best."

I finished my speech, waiting for Alberta to say something, but it never came. Instead, the look that came upon her face reminded me of my grandmother's from a few days ago. She'd called me over Skype, and when I'd questioned her on it, Babushka denied that she knew how to use to device.

"My grandson. Hold on to what you hold dearest and make it yours in every possible way. There will be ups and downs. More than you can imagine, your lives will be turned upside down and things impossible will come to life."

"Babushka I don't understand. What are you talking about?"

"My dear grandson, you are smart and will soon figure this out. Now, I have to go, this call was expensive. Goodbye grandson and I expect you to visit soon. I saw it. Bring flowers for me. Goodbye."

The connection cut off and I sat there staring at the screen, stunned. Two days later I received a package from my grandmother with her wedding ring inside and a note that _said the time is right when you least expect. _I started to understand her dream a bit better but most of it all murky.

As I sat here in Alberta's office, with her studying my face I felt as if the time would never come. "Belikov, it's alright. That was a beautiful by the way. None of you are going to get punished. I was in a similar situation once but with no one to cover for me. This will not be reported to Headmistress Kirova and no one is to know of this except me. Though I am assuming correctly that the princess will know about this?" I gave a swift nod. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Alberta? No it couldn't be. She would never. And up until a couple months ago I believed I would have never either.

"Thank you so much Alberta. You don't know how much this means. It can't be put into words. I can finally be with her."

She gave me a small smile. "But this is how it will go. No interactions between the two of you except for training and I will be checking in once in a while. I won't let you know so be prepared for anything. I expect no behavior other than hugging or the occasional kiss and I also feel as though I don't need to tell you this but none of this should be made public knowledge. If there is to be any interaction other than training, it is to be authorized by myself personally. Got it?" I nod. "One slip up and I won't be covering for you again. When you get to Court I want you come out publically with your relationship after a few weeks. This way, people will think that you have mutually developed an interest in each other and not while Rose was still a student." I didn't think about that and now I was glad Alberta did.

"And Belikov, don't hurt her in any kind of way or you will have to answer to me with her mother and father. I assume you don't know who her father is?"

"No, Guardian Petrov."

Well, I hope no bodily harm comes to you when he and Guardian Hathaway learn of your relationship with their daughter."

I cringed. "Thank you, Alberta. I know it's none of my business but who was your mentor?"

"Art Schoenberg. Now, Belikov, I don't want this public knowledge and I trust that you will kept it to yourself. Have a good night Dimitri." With that she walked out of the office leaving me to my thoughts. I walked back to my room deciding to freshen up a bit before I went to Rose

I took a quick shower, pulled on a pair of boxers and pants and laid down on my bed picking up a western that I was currently reading. I had some time to kill. I put my earphones in and pressed play. The song currently playing was one of my favourites and made me always think of Roza whenever I heard it. It described her and what she meant to me so perfectly.

_She's like a drop of rain  
From a clear blue sky  
When my throat is dry  
She's like a tall glass, full of love  
Or a Palomino flying through the clouds  
With both her arms around  
My heart, she can turn a bad day into dust_

_She's unreal  
So out of this world  
Unreal  
So down to earth_

_So good, for me  
So wide, so deep  
Her love  
The way it makes me feel  
She's unreal_

_It's like a honeysuckle,  
Blooming in the snow  
A warm kiss in the cold  
And the shade of a purple moon_

_When I trip and fall  
She always has my hand  
Right there when I land  
When I am down,  
She's running my rescue  
She's unreal  
So out of this world  
Unreal  
So down to earth  
So good, for me  
So wide, so deep  
Her love  
The way it makes me feel  
She's unreal_

_She's like waking up in a dream  
Walking around in my sleep  
A touch of heaven, totally surreal  
She's unreal  
Unreal_

_She's so good, for me  
So wide, so deep  
Her love  
The way it makes me feel  
She's unreal_

When I next looked up at the clock I saw that it was quickly approaching nine o'clock, curfew for students. I didn't have a shift tonight or tomorrow morning so if I was lucky, I would get to spend the night with Rose. I threw on a tight fitting black t-shirt, something I knew she liked, and if I played my cards right, it would be one heck of evening. I put on my signature duster and slipped one of my many stakes into the pocket. You never know what could happen.

I walked over to the senior novice dhampir dorms' using the trees as my cover seeing as though it was early morning human time and the sun was out shining bright today. I made my way to Rose's door, slipping past the matron when she turned her back. I knocked and waited for her to open it. When I didn't get an answer I knocked again and received a "just now" that sounded more like a _jush now_.

Hearing this, I frowned, thinking something was wrong, so I opened her door, grateful it was unlocked. I walked in and waited. She came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel, another one around her head and a toothbrush in her mouth. She had a looked stunned and the toothbrush almost fell out of her mouth. I slipped off my duster hanging it on the back of her desk chair and turned back to her, looking her up and down at least three times before returning to her face where she had her mouth gaping open and toothbrush now in hand.

"Close your mouth before you catch flies." She blushed and I smirked. "Go clean up and come back out."

I sat on her bed with my eyes closed as she came up to me, and curled up under my arm, her head resting on my chest. "Stay with me tonight," I heard her whisper.

I smiled, "my pleasure."

We lay there quietly, content with being in each other's arms for the time being. I leaned down and pecked her lips before she crawled out of bed and put on some clothes. After getting dressed, she slipped back into my embrace and I held her tightly.

I tried to ignore the nagging at the back of my mind but it wouldn't go away. I didn't want to ruin a perfect moment but I had to.

"Roza, we need to talk."

**A/N-Thank you to everyone who put this story on their alerts and favourites list. You don't know how much that means. Please I urge you to review because it's the only way I can tell if I'm doing something wrong or not. **

**_The answer to the last chapter's question was Lissa compelled Jeremy. This chapter's question is;_**

**_How many molnija marks does Dimitri have at the beginning of Vampire Academy? _**

**_Thank you for reading again and please review! _**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot. All the characters and anything seen in the Vampire Academy series belong to Richelle Mead.**

_Previously:_

"_Roza we need to talk."_

RPOV

As soon as I heard those words come out from Dimitri's mouth I instantly tensed up. I didn't know exactly what he meant but I knew nothing good followed those words said. Apparently Dimitri had felt me tense up and he pulled me closer to his chest enveloping me in his big arms. I nuzzled my face farther into his neck inhaling that sweet aftershave scent lingering on his skin.

"Roza not that kind of talk. Why would I give you up when you are the best thing that's ever been mine?" I snickered at his possessiveness. I hated that quality in all the guys I've dated but when Dimitri acted like it, it just made my heart melt. I liked to think he was mine too. I could lock him up in a tower and have my way with him any day any way.

"Did you seriously just quote a Taylor Swift song?" He just shrugged his shoulders and said, "I heard it on the radio one day and thought it was fitting as to what you are to me."

"Aw that's so sweet," I said pinching his cheeks like he was a little boy. "As long as you're mine." He gently removed my hand and held them in his own interlocking our fingers. I rested our hands on his chest and looked up at to give him a quick peck.

"Always. I am yours as you are mine. No one else shall have you like I do. I will spend forever with you and you'll be all that I'll ever want or need."

"I love you, Dimitri." I used his name because I wanted to portray how I felt about him and I hope he knew. "You own every piece of my heart. Your name will always linger on my tongue and your presence will always be alive in my mind." I put my hands on either side of his face and touched my lips with his a bit more forcefully. Every smooth caress of tongues and touch of lips was all I could ever live on. Dimitri pulled back first and rested his forehead on mine. I was glad that I had the same breath-taking effect I had on him as he had on me. Literally that kiss took my breath away. When we regained our breath he tilted his head so his mouth was right next to my ear. I could feel every puff of air as he breathed.

"And I you Roza. You are my everything. You are the air I breathe, the water I drink, the food I eat and the sun that warms me. You are so much more, more than everything." We stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like eternity then I had to go and ruin it by yawning. To be honest it was getting pretty late and the whole Jesse fiasco tired me out. Not to mention the amazing sex we had.

"Go to sleep Roza. You need it. I'll be here when you wake up. I love you."

"Wait, before I do, you said you had to talk to me about something. It sounded like it's important."

"Not that important. It can wait until you're all rested up."

"No, tell me. We don't keep things from each other now. No matter how much the importance may be. We're equals. Besides it'll come and bite us in the butt if we don't get it out in the open. It's not good to keep things bottled up."

"Look who's the Zen now?" I cut a glare at Dimitri despite me being very sleepy. I had to know what this was about now or else it would haunt me down the road. Experience has made me very careful dealing with this kind of stuff. "Oh, shut up." I interrupted Dimitri. He shook his head playfully at me and pretended to be disappointed with me for my 'language'. I gave him another stare that said 'Are you done now?' and he continued saying whatever he was before I cut him off.

"It's a rather serious matter." He looked at me with his guardian mask while I had one of worry written on my face. He sighed before he began again.

"Alberta knows." He waited for me to say something. When I didn't- because I was shocked but I should've known better. Nothing can be kept hidden from that woman- he started speaking again.

"When she called me into her office it was to discuss whether or not I would take part on the mission. When I didn't answer her right away she got suspicious. She asked me about you and I couldn't lie. Before I opened my mouth to speak though she came out with it. She said she had her suspicions and I confirmed them when I didn't answer. She said she'd keep us a secret but we have to limit the interactions between us. She'll be dropping by at random to our training sessions. She also said she wants us to keep our relationship hidden for a few weeks when we get to Court so it's not obvious that we had something going on while you were in school. That it was developed in the weeks after you graduated."

He looked at me, wearily. "Roza, I don't want to hide any more than you do but I don't also want rumors going around. One that could possibly get you in trouble and ruin your chances of guarding Lissa."

"I understand. I wouldn't want anything to come to you too. By the way did Alberta tell you why she'd keep us a secret?"

"She said she was in the similar position but her mentor was Art Schoenberg."

"Oh." That sounded so un-Alberta like. I remembered wanting to ask him something but feeling completely shy now. I bowed my head and bit my lip while my hands fidgeted on top of his chest.

"Roza, spit it out. I know you have something to say to me. Don't worry I won't get mad at you if that's what you're afraid of."

I stared into his eyes which gave me the confidence I needed. "Comrade, I was wondering if you could ask to get a charge switch. I know it's completely selfish of me and I understand if the idea appalls you. But with both of us guarding Lissa I just want her safety to be one hundred percent sound. And I'm worried that if we are attacked I won't choose her but you." I looked down again feeling deflated and not wanting to bare his look if it was one of anger and disappointment. Dimitri put two fingers underneath my chin and pulled my face up to look at his.

"Oh, Roza, how could you ever think I would be mad at you for asking this of me? Of course I understand why you asked it and I had similar thoughts. I was going to ask Alberta but our conversation turned the opposite direction. I was going to find her and ask her tomorrow."

I was surprised; I thought he was going to be honest to god mad at me.

"I was going to ask to be Christian's guardian so we could still be around each other, that is if Vasilisa and he are still together."

"I love you so much. You've planned this out so we could be together and this makes me love you that much more. I love you, Dimitri. You don't know how much this means to me. I thought I was going to have to choose between the two people who I love the most. And it was going to be you, but still, it hurt just thinking about it."

"Roza, I love you too, and no matter what, you will always come first to me. Not them. Not the Moroi. You are more special to me than you could even begin to imagine. You don't know what it means sacrificing one thing to get my whole world. It's like the whole world finally having peace. It's the best feeling in the world."

He gave me a quick kiss that was over way too soon for my liking but I let it slide. "Now go to sleep, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

I soon fell asleep in the arms of the man I loved, and I knew right there in that moment, he would be all I ever needed.

**A/N- So I know it's a lot shorter than the last chapters but I felt like this was needed in order for the next ones. Kind of like a filler. It was mostly to explain the situation and get a better view of it in Rose's eyes. Also a little bit of Romitri fluff, kind of. I hope you liked it all!**

**Anyways I need to thank all of you because the day after I posted the last chapter my email was bombarded with messages that all said I've gained new followers and favourites and reviews. It made my heart swell to see people actually enjoy this story. **

**The answer to last chapter's question was; Dimitri had six molnija marks at the beginning of Vampire Academy. This chapter's question is:**

**At what age did Dimitri beat up his abusive Moroi father?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Richelle Mead owns all VA content. I only own the plot! Happy Reading!**

_Previously;_

"_Now go to sleep because we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."_

_I soon feel asleep in the arms of the man I love and I knew right there in that moment he would be all I ever needed. _

"Mommy mommy look!" I looked over to where a boy was pointing to his sandcastle he made. I was wondering why he was calling me 'mommy'. As far as I knew I didn't have any children. I barely scratched twenty.

"Mommy! Look at my sandcastle!" I turned to the boy whose back was still to me. He was yelling and sitting near the water with a man that could only be described as god sent. I was still dumbstruck and out of it. I almost didn't register that a little hand was on my arm pulling me. I stumbled along and turned back to the boy who couldn't be more than two and looked at his features. Tan skin, angular cheekbones and a big mouth- not literally- with full plump lips. I saw traces that were familiar but couldn't place them at the moment. But what startled me the most was the milk chocolate eyes that I was so accustomed to. Eyes that I woke up to every morning. Eyes of the most perfect man on earth. Eyes that belonged to my wonderful husband. I was so stunned by the resemblance that I tripped over a branch and fell.

I was aware that the boy had stopped running and stooped next to me. "Mommy, are you all right?" I must have looked at him funny because he then said, "Daddy, I think mommy is hurt! She's looking at me funny."

The man that was sitting in the sand next to the boy earlier came rushing over to my side immediately and lifted my face up into his to see any signs of confusion or concussion. His eyes met mine and I was plagued with the familiarness. These were the same eyes I have seen every morning and night. . . and that little boy.

"Comrade. Why are you looking at me like that? I'm not hurt."

"Oh Roza, when our son said that I was worried."

"Well thanks for playing the-… wait did you say son?"

My eyes flew open and I pressed my hand to my fluttering heart but got blocked by a muscled back and torso on top of me. I tried to control my erratic breathing by paying attention to the butterfly kisses being placed on my neck, jaw and face. I hadn't even noticed the wonderful touches until now.

"Calm down Roza. Deep breath in and out. Pay attention to the sound of my voice. Surround yourself with it. Calm down." I breathed in and out- deeply I must add- and counted to ten while trying to wrap the wonderful and alluring voice around me like a lover's embrace. Slowly I calmed myself down. I smiled a little when I felt the kisses continue. I placed my hand on the back of Dimitri's neck and pulled his lips up to meet mine where they met in the most sensual and blissful of ways, the perfect good morning.

"Mm, good morning Comrade. I can definitely get used to waking up like that every morning for the rest of my life." I remembered the dream. "Well not the cold sweat and erratic breathing part." I added.

"Good morning my love, my Roza. I can also get used to waking up next to your beautiful face." Dimitri looked hesitant. Like he wanted to say something more but was contemplating. I could see the inner battle he was fighting by not asking me so I decided to put him out of his misery.

"Comrade, what is it? I can see you still have something to say. It's written all over your face like an open book."

"Roza, what was it? A nightmare?"

And there it was. I knew it was only going to be a matter of time before he brought that up and looks like it was fated to be a short wait. I breathed in and out deeply remembering. It wasn't exactly a nightmare per se but more of a rude awakening. Something I could never have no matter how much I wished and prayed for it. That's exactly what I told Dimitri. When I finished I regretted it immediately seeing the hurt written on his face. By us being together it was denying both of us having a family together. I was denying Dimitri the chance of a baby. Upon further thinking of this I began silently crying. Yep the good mood from the morning had vanished and been replaced with one of sorrow.

Dimitri sat up against my headboard and gathered my into his arms pulling me against his bare chest. Since my face was facing his chest I knew I was wetting him with my tears but apparently he didn't care because all he kept doing was smoothing my hair, occasionally kissing my forehead and whispering comforting words to me in his native tongue. I was hiccupping while sobbing and my chest was tightening. I felt Dimitri move his hands that were on my hair to my back and repeat the same motion but up and down and in circles. I tried to focus on the 'exercises' that I had done this morning when I first woke up.

"Oh Dimitri… I didn't know what was going on… it wasn't a night mare but it was scary. It was like a cruel trick played on me by god." I hiccupped. "I was on the beach and a little boy came up to me. He started calling me mommy and to come and see his sandcastle." I looked up at Dimitri and saw that his face fell slack at the mention of mommy. I could tell he knew were this dream was going. But alas, I continued on. "I was dumbstruck. Didn't know what to do. So he called me it again and pulled me along. I stumbled and tripped when I saw his face. His features were oddly familiar and his eyes…they were what stunned me the most. They were unmistakably recognizable and they were yours." I hiccupped again and gasped for air that wasn't in my lungs- okay so that might have been stretching the truth a teensy bit. I stopped and regained my breathing. "The most saddening part though was when you came over to me and told me _our son_ had yelled I was hurt."

"Oh Roza. I can't imagine the pain and hurt you must have felt at that moment. No wonder you woke up in a cold sweat and irregular breathing. I thought you had a nightmare."

"In a way it was," I said.

"Roza I feel like I'm depriving you of the chance that you will never have children as long as you're with me. I…I..-"

"Dimitri freaking Belikov don't you dare end that sentence. You are all I need and all I ever need. You will always be enough for me and I don't care if you cannot give me a child because I can live without him of her." Then in a quieter voice, "You'll always be enough for me. You and your love are strong enough to hold me up. I love you so freaking much and I have no idea what I would do without you. Please, please don't ever leave me." I begged the last part.

"I promise I will never. Oh Roza you are everything I will ever need or want. I promise I will never leave you and will always love you. My one true love."

Feeling content with his answer I gave him a quick kiss and loosened his arms from my waist. Or tried to. I decided to get up now and go shower because if I didn't I would be tempted to stay in bed all day. Preferably with my hunk of a Russian. And I'm also pretty sure Alberta wouldn't appreciate that even though she's given us the consent. Dimitri immediately tightened his grip on me when I tried to remove his arms. And let me say, he has one hell of a grip. "Relax babe. I'm going and take a shower so we can go to training." I said trying to reason with my lover.

He smiled at me and let me go. "Thank you," I told him.

When we showed up at the gym Alberta was there waiting for us. I looked away sheepishly when Alberta looked between Dimitri and me and raised an eyebrow at us. "Good morning Belikov, Rose. I'm here to supervise and see how training is going this morning."

All three of us entered the gym and Dimitri and I started sparring. We both delivered a series of kicks and punches. We were both sweaty by the time I had managed to pin him by straddling his waist. I staked him and whispered "Dead" in his ear. I quickly remembered Dimitri and I had an audience so I got up and held out a hand offering to help him up. When we got up Alberta walked over to us and congratulated me on my win. She also told us that she didn't want us having a repeat of what happened last night tonight. I blushed at her comment. When she left us I walked over to my gym bag and put on a tank top seeing as I was only in a sports bra and a new pair of sweats. I looked over to Dimitri who was doing the same thing. We hadn't even bothered to go into the change rooms and after what had happened this morning I don't know whether to be embarrassed or mad if we did.

I walked up to him and gave him a quick hug and peck on the cheek and went to first period. Luckily I had bodyguard techniques with Mason and Eddie but unluckily for me I had it with Stan. Well I was determined to not let Stan ruin the good mood I was in. I walked into class a little late and was received with glare from Stan. I gave him a little chuckle and walked over to my seat where I sat in the middle of Mason and Eddie.

"Hey boys," I said.

"Hey Rose." Mason replied. Eddie gave me a cheeky smile and said hi. I bent down to retrieve my text book from my bag- honestly I didn't even know why we needed one. We're just learning how to protect a body and you don't learn that from reading- and sat back up.

Mason was looking at me, "So Rose how was your night?"

**A/N- And a cliff hanger. I wonder what Rose will say? I want to thank you all to those who reviewed, followed and favourited! Means a lot! Even to the guest reviewers, your reviews are always welcome. It lets me know how I'm doing with this. I loved reading them!**

**Now, updates from now on will be a little hectic and crazy due to school, homework and extra-curricular activities. That also goes for the length of the chapters too but hey, anything is better than nothing!**

**_The answer to last chapter's question was Dimitri was 13 when he beat up his father! This chapter's question is;_**

**_How did Rose hurt her ankle when they came back from the shopping trip in Vampire Academy?_**

**Please review! I love them also and any kind are accepted. I need to know if I should keep going with this story or not. I have some big plans but I need to know if anyone is interested in reading them so please please review! Can we try for at least 5 before the next update? Maybe?**

**Thank you! **


	7. Chapter 7

_Previously;_

"_Hey boys," I said. _

"_Hey Rose." Mason replied. Eddie gave me a cheeky smile and said hi. I bent down to retrieve my text book from my bag- honestly I didn't even know why we needed one. We're just learning how to protect a body and you don't learn that from reading- and sat back up. _

_Mason was looking at me, "So Rose how was your night?"_

When I heard those words coming out of Mason's mouth I tensed up. He must have noticed it and so did Eddie. 

"What's wrong Hathaway? Got something to hide?" Eddie asked. 

"No no, just not interesting. That's all." I said a bit to enthusiastically trying to brush off the topic. I hoped they didn't recognize me changing the subject. 

"So tell us. What made your night so boring?" Mason goaded. 

Well it that's what they want, that's what they'll get. 

"Nothing much. You know the usual with Dimitri. It ran a little later than usual. Lissa and I had a talk. Yep." 

I hoped they didn't ask for more but luckily I was saved by Stan. Never in my life would I have thought that. Gave me the heebie jeebies thinking about it. "Ashford, Hathaway and Castile! Have something to share with the class?"

"No sir," Mason said. 

"Then I suggest you three shut it and pay attention." 

"Yes sir." Eddie replied. Geez these boys were wimps. Well time to show Stanny Boy here some Hathaway attitude. 

"You see Stan, oops I mean Guardian Alto, what my boys here are trying to say is if your lesson wasn't that boring then maybe people wouldn't have to find something else to occupy themselves. And the only logical answer is that we have to. Have our own conversations on the side to satisfy our boredom because you are not." I smiled to myself very deviously and stared at Stan. My gaze not wavering. I cocked my eyebrows up at him and dared him to say something. When his face deepened in a shade of red I felt satisfied that I did a good job in angering him. I turned to Mason then to Eddie.

"Ain't that right boys?" 

Mason and Eddie visibly gulped and sunk lower into their seats trying to disappear. While I sat straight anyplace my forearms on my thighs currently engaged in a staring contest with Stan. Any minute now he was going to pop. And I was looking forward to it. 

"Hathaway! Get out!" And there it was. 

"Gladly." I told him with a hint of sarcasm in my voice pushed my way past the aisle and walked over to the door with my hand lingering on it. I turned back to Stan. "Anything is better than this and I sure bet my thoughts are a million times better." 

I heard snickers from the rest of the class and walked other with a swing in my step. I held my hand behind me and flipped Stan the bird. I heard the class laugh now and decided to get the he'll out of dodge before I get into more trouble than I already am. 

I walked to the church- I know weird right? - And sat down on the last pew. Yawning loudly, I laid down and used my bag as a pillow albeit a very uncomfortable one. I was dozing in and out of sleep when I heard footsteps approaching my way. Probably the janitor or occasional matron. I could deal with them. I shifted a bit trying to get more comfortable.

I reached my hand up to touch and scratch my face when it felt itchy. Like my hair was tickling it. I felt the soft brown locks that claimed residence on my head and pushed away. So much better. A few seconds later I felt the same tickling sensation. Brushing my hair back I turned over to my side being careful not to fall over the thin pew. Feeling my hair again I started to get really annoyed. Maybe even a bit pissed. And at what? A strand of hair. When the intensity of the feeling picked up I opened one eye to see a pair of chocolate milky brown eyes staring at me with the sides crinkled in amusement. I would instantly recognize those eyes in a heartbeat. I closed my eye back smiling to myself knowing that he knew I knew.

I flinched a bit when I felt silk on my cheeks, jaw and just about anywhere. Or the closest to what silk felt like. A deep voice came through, one that I could listen to all say and not get tired of.

"C'mon Roza. I know you're not sleeping. Wake up for me. Please?" I arched my neck in response giving him more space to place his warm beautiful kisses. "Roza don't be like that. I want to see your beautiful eyes. C'mon on beautiful, give in."

I needed him to see that I was still sleeping- well more like pretending- if this was going to work. When I felt his lips move closer to my mouth, I snaked my arm lightning fast around his neck and pulled his head closer to mine- if possible- making his lips land on mine.

Using Dimitri as leverage I pulled myself up into a sitting position. Without breaking the kiss Dimitri sat down and pulled me onto his lap. I wrapped my legs around his waist and rested my forehead to his when I separated our lips for air. I took several deep breaths and whispered a hi into his ear when I put my lips closer but not touching feeling joy when I felt shivers rack through his body.

"Roza,"

"Shh," I whispered to him wanting to freeze and capture this moment. I breathed in deep and reveled in the strong scent of aftershave he wore. I can't believe I didn't notice that as soon as he walked into the church. I must have been really tired or really annoyed with Stan. Just for being Stan. I took a couple more breaths then pulled back giving him room. I stayed on his lap though and his hands remained on my hips.

"Howdy Comrade," I said suddenly feeling elated. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in a guardian class?" I frowned, because he was supposed to be in my class I realized.

"I had some business to attend to. I came in when I heard the commotion." He said staring at me questioningly with a raised eyebrow. Damn, why can't I do that.

I laughed sheepishly. "Well you see Comrade, I have no idea what you could possibly be talking abo-"

"C'mon, Roza, I know you. You caused it didn't you?"

"Now I'm flabbergasted. How could you think that wittle ole me did _that_?"

"Then why are you sitting here and might I add of all places and not in class?" I guess he got his answer when I stayed quiet. Well it's not my fault.

"Did you hear everything?" I asked him. He nodded. I looked down feeling mad at myself. I thought Dimitri was disappointed in me. And man, how I hated to disappoint him. I refused to meet his eyes, just kept looking down. He placed to fingers underneath my chin and pulled my face up to meet his.

"And it was impressive. I've never seen anyone use their words better than you."

"So I didn't make you mad?" I said suddenly wanting his approval more than anything. I think I said it a bit too hopeful though, because he must have caught onto it.

"Roza, you will always have my approval." I smiled. "I figured you might need to cool down a bit so when you stormed," I laughed at that. "I followed you. Never would have thought you would have came to the church. I decided to take it upon myself to make sure you were alright." Another piece of my heart just signed itself off in Dimitri's name. This man was just too sweet. I was lucky that I had him. Dimitri really was one of kind. So rare to find these days, well if you didn't count Christian. How he treats Lissa, I couldn't have asked for someone else for her.

"The man's just so easy to annoy." I shrugged. "And kicking me out? That was just drastic if you ask me. But no one is asking my opinion." I held my hands out. I put my hands on Dimitri's shoulders and looked up at the ceiling smiling broadly. The coloured glass was beautiful; it really was but all of a sudden looking at it made me nauseous. I tried pushing it back down. It didn't work. I jumped out of Dimitri lap, my speed rivaling a Strigoi's, and ran to the nearest bush I could find emptying the contents of my stomach out.

I bent over and placed my hands on my knees when I felt the nausea reside. Dimitri came over and held my hair back rubbing my back in what was supposed to be soothing circles. I breathed and out and got a whiff of his strong musky aftershave. That combined with the motions on my back made the bile rise up back. I lurched forwards again towards the bush and retched. I squinted my eyes closed and murmured quietly to Dimitri to go over to my bag and get me a towel.

I used the towel he brought back and wiped my mouth feeling the nausea go away for good. I gave Dimitri a nod letting him know I was alright. I tried walking back inside the church but I felt a little dizzy and I think I must have started swaying.

"Roza, are you alright?"

"I will be Comrade. Probably happened because I didn't have breakfast after training this morning. Guess I got distracted by Alberta."

"Are you sure. I think you should maybe go to the clinic."

I gave him a pointed look and a sharp no. "But Roza, I-" I gave him another sharp look and he got the message by the deep sigh I got.

"Just let me go to my room. I'll sleep it off. And get some food into my body. Ok? I'll be alright." I started walking closer to my bag but after two steps I felt the dizziness intensify. I stumbled over my own feet and steadied myself when I feel forwards on braced my hands on the wall. I closed my eyes and did some deep breathing trying to clear the black spots that were dancing in my vision. I emptied my head and focused on the air entering and exiting my body. I guess that didn't work too well because I didn't even know that I had passed out…

When I woke up out of my unconscious state I noticed I was in my room on my bed. I stretched and yawned. I still felt pretty tired so I put my arms behind me ready to fluff my pillow and go to sleep but I heard crinkling and the all the too familiar touch of paper. It was a note. I picked it up and brought it close to my face so I could read it. When I was close enough to my nose I got a whiff of that musky man scent that could only be described as Dimitri. The one that also made me super nauseous. I barely had enough time to read it…

_Roza, _

_You scared me so much when you passed out. No words can describe the excruciating pain I felt when you fell and I barely caught you. I carried you back to your room, changed you and put you to bed. I am so sorry to have to leave my beautiful flower but know that you are with me in my heart wherever and whenever. I know you will still be tired when you read this so go back to sleep. Don't go back to classes. I have excused you from them and don't want to risk you getting hurt. Sleep and dream sweet dreams my love. I'll be there when you wake. _

_Yours always,_

_Dimitri_

…before I had my head over the toilet bowl. I propped my head on my hand which was resting on the seat. I caught my breath after my _second_ puke and got up moving myself over to the sink brushing my teeth before I flushed the toilet and climbed back into bed pulling the covers up to my chin. I was feeling really cold which was strange because we were in spring. It shouldn't be that cold. I thought less of it as I felt myself drifting off.

I felt the all too familiar churning in my stomach and made it to the washroom just in time to start heaving my guts up. I dry heaved a couple times and strong but gentle hands pulled back my hair into a messy ponytail. His scent made me heave more. I was seriously getting tired and pissed now. I wanted this to end, to be over with, and to be done. Kapeesh.

"Please leave," I whispered hoarsely to Dimitri praying that he wouldn't ask questions. He whispered back an "I love you" and exited quietly out. I quickly cleaned myself up and brushed my teeth. I walked to the open door and leaned against the frame. Dimitri turned his head meeting my gaze.

"Go wash off your aftershave." I told him. "I'll explain later. I can't take it." I moved out of the doorway sweeping my arms in a gallant bow towards the door motioning for him to do what I just asked. I moved to the bed where he was sitting moments ago and stripped the sheets off when I heard the tap running. I went to my linen closet- I know. A linen closet? Who would've thought I would have one of those- I grabbed new sheets and covered the bed with them. I also grabbed to comforters plus a blanket and moved to my bed feeling tired once more. I laid down and curled in a ball trying to block the cold. I heard the taps turn off and felt the bed dip underneath Dimitri's weight. He picked me up, cradling me in his arms and I snuggled closer into my new freshly aftershave removed Dimitri.

He pulled all the covers over us and when I was comfortably buried between him and the covers I gave him a quick kiss. "Hello." I said and nuzzled my head farther into the crook of his neck breathing in the new scent that covered him. It was his own. And it was heaven.

"Hello my love. I trust you had a good sleep?" I nodded and hummed my yes. I felt the vibrations of my voice through his skin and imagined what it must be doing to him. By the sound of his low growl I was pleased at how I affected him.

"Do you want to tell me what all that was about?" He asked.

"I threw up." I stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. And I mean it should have been too. He was there. He tied me hair back.

"I meant with me washing off and you stripping the sheets," Dimitri clarified.

"Oh, you see that beautiful scent of your aftershave was making me nauseous."

"Oh Roza, I didn't know."

"Of course you wouldn't you idiot. I just told you." Wow, I was really cranky today.

"Well…" His fingers ghosted over my arms leaving a trail of goose bumps where he touched. "Did it happen again today while I wasn't here?"

"Once when I woke up and got your note. I smelt the lingering aftershave on it and it provoked the nausea. I went straight back to bed after that and didn't wake up after you came and I smelt you." I told him truthfully because honestly, I didn't feel like beating around the bush. And I know he would have gotten it out of me sooner or later so why not the former? It would have to happen eventually. Just saves me the fight in the end.

"So that's three times today Roza?" I nodded. "Did you eat anything for today?" I shook my head no. he loosed one of his arms from my waist and reached to the bedside table. I sat up and almost drooled when he gave me a bag filled with freshly baked chocolate doughnuts. I grabbed them and devoured the first three in record time. Dimitri chuckled and I glared at him playfully.

"Go easy on those Roza, we don't want you throwing up again." A "thirsty" came out of my filled mouth and Dimitri reached over to get the water bottle on the side. I gulped the first half down and sighed when everything went down.

"You're the best Comrade. You know that?" I whispered to him in awe.

"Thank you Roza. You're something yourself." I moaned when I bit into my fourth doughnut.

"Where did you get these? The cafeteria ones aren't nearly as good." I moaned a little louder this time and Dimitri laughed out loud.

"I made them." I turned to him with scrunched up eyebrows and an are-you-serious-face.

I snorted. "You bake?"

"On contrary to your belief. I do and cook too. My mother taught me. I made them before I came. Thought you could use some love in the form of your favourite food."

"Well aren't you the sweetest?" I pinched his cheeks like a mother would a baby. "I'm glad you can because I can't even boil water. Who's gonna cook for me when we move into Court?"

He smiled and said, "I will. I will always feed you. I'll never let you go hungry." I yawned loudly. "Go to sleep Roza."

"But I don't wanna!" I said as a child would when their parent would tell them to go to bed. He chuckled again when I yawned for a second time. "Well maybe I am tired. Just a bit." I started to lull into dreamland when I wondered what Dimitri's would sound like when he sang. "Sing me to sleep." I gave him pouty lips and all. I even squealed when he nodded his head.

Now it's time to say good night  
Good night, sleep tight  
Now the sun turns out his light  
Good night, sleep tight  
Dream sweet dreams for me

Dream sweet dreams for you

Close your eyes and I'll close mine  
Good night, sleep tight  
Now the moon begins to shine  
Good night, sleep tight  
Dream sweet dreams for me  
Dream sweet dreams for you

Mmmmmm  
Mmmmmm  
Mmmmmmmmmm 

Close your eyes and I'll close mine  
Good night, sleep tight  
Now the sun turns out his light  
Good night, sleep tight  
Dream sweet dreams for me  
Dream sweet dreams for you

It was just as beautiful as I imagined.

**A/N- Here it finally is. Thanks for being so patient. The past two weeks have been so hectic with six tests all in the same week. But I finally got it up. Hope you liked it. **

**Please tell me in a review!**

**The answer to last chapter is Rose did break her ankle on a rotted bench when coming back from the mall trip. This chapter's question is;**

**In Frostbite who was helping the Strigoi at the Badica residence when Rose and Dimitri went for her Qualifier?**

**Happy reading and hope you liked. Please review! 5 reviews before the next post? Maybe?**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all VA material. I own nothing but the plot. **

**This chapter goes out to megladon1616 who was super excited for this. I hope this satisfies your wait!**

_Previously_

_Dream sweet dreams for me  
Dream sweet dreams for you_

_It was just as beautiful as I imagined_.

The next few weeks went by just as worse as that day from the church. Dimitri had thought it was just a twenty four hour thing. He cancelled practice for two weeks thought just to make sure and after I told him I wasn't feeling up to par.

But that break was ending today. I would have to go back and I hoped I didn't puke while we were training because that would blow my whole cover. Really I don't know how Dimitri hadn't figured that I was keeping a secret from him all this time. The only one who knew I had thrown up was Lissa and that was a couple days after the initial incident.

I woke up one morning retching my guts up when I heard a knock on the door. I tried to answer but all that came out was a moan. I rested my head on the toilet and felt Lissa barge through the door through the bond.

She saw me and immediately tried healing me but couldn't which made the situation all that worse.

And on top of that, in between classes I have to run off somewhere where no one would see me and puke in a bush. It was nasty and happened about three times a day. Lissa covered for me a lot but I put my foot down and said enough is enough. I was tired of dealing with this and it was annoying the shit out of me.

I finally decided to go see Dr. Olendzki about it. After classes today. Lissa would cover for me and tell Dimitri seething to get me off his tail.

I was pretty sure I had an idea of what was happening to me and so did Liss. But I was impossible. She hasn't come straight out and said it but I've felt it coming through the bond very subtly. The thought of it excited and scared me at the same time.

I was happy I was getting the one thing I wanted most with Dimitri but I was still freaking seventeen for crying out loud!

My classes went through in a blur because all I could focus on was my appointment after school. I was anxious.

When final bell rang I raced to my room and waited for Lissa. She was supposed to meet me here before we embarked on this mission. Oh my god, what was wrong with me? Embarked on this mission? I was losing my mind. I sat on my bed and jumped when I heard knocks. Lissa was here.

"Okay. It's all set. Dimitri thinks we're together," since Dimitri and I have gotten closer he is more lenient in allowing me to take breaks for some time with Lissa. This was the first time I was doing it. I didn't like it one bit that I was lying to him but I kept telling myself I would make it up with the news I would get today. Hopefully it would be good. "And I've booked a private room at the clinic for you and requested Dr. Olendzki. Everything's set and all you have to do is show up in the next ten minutes.

I made my way over to the clinic moving in the cover of the trees. I didn't want anyone to see I was going to the clinic willingly and report it to Kirova or even Alberta who in turn would tell Dimitri.

I met Dr. Olendzki at the front desk since it was after hours and she led me into a room where she told me to hop on the 'bed'.

Show turned to face me. "So Rose, why are you here?" She asked me. Her pen poised on her clipboard ready to write.

"I don't know." I said truthfully. "I've been really nauseous lately and whenever I do too much I get dizzy and feel faint. Also my appetite has increased." I rattled things off as they came to my mind.

She looked up in thought then back at me with a curious expression. "When wad the last time you had sex?"

I thought I didn't hear right because I did a double take. "Um excuse me?" I asked her in disbelief.

She repeated the question. Slower this time. The first time I heard it perfectly clear but still, it came as a shock.

"About three weeks ago." I said.

"And when did you first throw up?"

"Around two weeks ago. And it's been continuing." She wrote that down.

"When was your last menstruation cycle?"

I didn't really remember. It's normal for me to be late. I didn't have a set date every month. It just happened. Unless it didn't come a month I didn't really care. Now thinking back on it, it's been a long time since I felt bloated and experienced cramps. Sure signs of a period.

"I think about five weeks ago." I told the doctor and she wrote it down. I started fidgeting.

"Is it usual for you to be late?" She inquired.

"To be late? Yes. To be this late? Then no." I heard her pen moving along the paper.

"Two more questions. Havre you been feeling more sensitive around the chest area?"

That really hadn't come to me. It has now that I think of it. Sometimes it hurts when I lie face first on my bed- something that won't usually happen- and when Mason accidentally hit me there combat class once. It took days for them to stop feeling sore.

And that's what I told her. "Last question. You said your appetite has increased?" I nodded yes at this. "By how much?"

"Well it's almost twice as much as I usually eat. I've never noticed it but when Lissa pointed it out to me I started to get worried. Cause Lissa would never talk about my eating habits unless it really was a concern. I mean I always eat a lot. But not _that_ much." I rambled on.

My hands started increasing the intensity of the fidgeting and my foot started tapping when I sat up. Dr. Olendzki got up and walked out telling me she would be back in a second. She handed me two boxes.

Pregnancy tests. I almost cried right there then. She must have noticed the change in my demeanor because she gripped my hand and gave a comforting squeeze and smile.

She pointed the way to the bathroom and I jumped off the bed and walked to the washroom we're I peed on the sticks and waited. It was the longest three minutes of my life. When my phone beeped signaling time was up I looked down at the sticks in the sink. But only to see they we're upside down with the side I wanted to see face down.

With shaking hands I turned over the sticks and sank to the floor putting my head in my hands crying.

I laughed and smiled to myself. Still sobbing out of joy but a bit of nervousness. Two taps on the door told me that Dr. Olendzki was standing on the other side. I picked myself up off the floor and composed myself facing her.

I threw my arms around her in a hug. She tensed for a minute then put her arms around me laughing.

"Well I guess it good news?" I nodded enthusiastically and showed her the two plus signs.

She laughed once more. "Well congrats Rose." I thanked her. I couldn't wait to tell Lissa and Dimitri.

_Dimitri_. How washed going to take this. I had to find out from Dr. O. I would be devastated if he doubted me and left.

She looked at me knowing I had question. She put her arm around me and led me back to the room where I sat on a chair and she sat at the desk.

"How is this possible?" I asked. She looked at me funny. Oh yeah I remembered, she didn't know who or _what_ the father was. "Both its parents are dhampirs. It's not possible."

She breathed in deep now understanding the question. "Well Rose, the only possible answer I have for this is your shadow kissed genes. My best guess is when Lissa brought you back to life she also cured your infertility. Now you have the ability Rose, to reproduce with your kind." She smiled at me. "But I have heard stories of this happening before. Very, very, very rare. But not impossible if one of the parents have some sort of special spirit induced dormant gene brought to life in them or further back in generations." Huh. Wait Dimitri's grandmother had something like that.

I sighed calmly. I had evidence that this child's the product of two dhampirs. There was no reason for Dimitri to doubt me if he just listened. That is if he stays long even to hear me out before he storms off in a fit of rage. I hope that didn't happen.

I was so excited to tell him we were having our own miracle and caught up in my fantasies that I didn't hear Dr. O.

"Now Rose that we indeed know you are pregnant there are some things you habeas to consider. First are the choices. Abortion, adoption and keeping it." I looked at her in horror when she said abortion. How could anyone do a life? Consciously kill it?

"I'm keeping it." I said like I've never been surer of something in my life.

She beamed at me. "Now since graduation is only two months away, taking you out of your combat classes wouldn't be necessary. Although hand to hand combat I with not allow." I started to protest but she held up a hand to stop my words. "You will have to let Alberta know so she can take care of that. Anyone you want to tell will be up to you. I am strongly advising that you tell the father."

"Of course." I said. I would be stupid not too. And Dimitri had a right to know that he would be fathering a child.

"Then that's it Rose. I'll set up another appointment for you to come back so we can do checkups. A week from today at the same time?" She looked at me for conformation. I nodded affirmatively.

"Thank you so much," I told her and left the clinic. I sat down on a nearby bench and tried to get into Lissa's head to see where she was. The bond told me briefly that she was in her room and bored as hell but super anxious to hear what I had to say. I mentally prepared myself for the squeals and tears when I told her. Quickly but quietly, since it was past curfew, I walked to her room. I almost got caught by a guardian but my snaking skills were up to par and I evaded them very efficiently.

I knocked on her door quietly and midway through the second knock, it opened to reveal Lissa's face of anxiety. She quickly ushered me in and I flopped down on her bed- not face first. I had to care my sensitive boobs- and she swiveled her desk chair over to me sitting with her chin on the chair back.

"Patience is a virtue my dear." I said with a hint of a smile. She tried to playfully slap me on the nearest piece of me that she could reach. Which happened to be my stomach. Fast as lightning my own hand reached out to block hers. I just had a flash of maternal instinct that nothing could happen to this child I was carrying in my stomach.

I was still grasping her hand in mine. Tight enough to keep hers in mine without her being able to break my hold but loose enough that my hold wouldn't hurt her. She looked at me with a glimmer of hope in her eyes and I felt the thought flow through the bond. I nodded once to confirm her suspicions.

She squealed in delight and had tears flowing down her cheeks. Wow, her reaction to the news could have rivaled mine. "I'm going to be an aunt." She said letting the words sink in for the first time. "I'm going to be an aunt!" She said it a bit more confidently for the second time and when she said it a third time still not quite over the shock I laughed. A good hearty belly laugh.

She managed to escape and pulled me into the tightest hug ever. I swear all of her body mass was packed into that squeeze because it's the tightest hug I've ever felt from Lissa.

"I'm going to be an aunt. And I'll be the best aunt in the history of aunts. I'll spoil him of her rotten. It'll get everything and anything in the world. Oh god, I have to start shopping and planning your baby shower. And your nursery! What colour do you want it in and who should I invite to your baby show-"

I was starting to get annoyed at her rambling but I could never be mad at her for this. She was like the freaking Energizer Bunny! I was barely over a month- hopefully- and all this madness was going on. okay, I wouldn't exactly call it madness but you get what I mean.

"Can I…" Lissa put her hand out to my stomach but not touching it. She was asking permission. I nodded yes and felt her hand on my belly a moment later.

"Oh…" I felt elated and joyous feelings coming from the bond. From what? I didn't know and I was going to make it a mission to find out.

"Liss I can feel something but I don't know what. It feels like the euphoria you get from using your magic."

She beamed at me showing off those fangs and all. "I can talk to it."

"Wha… what…" I stumbled over my words. I couldn't believe what she said.

"I can talk to it." Then she giggled a bit.

"What's so funny?" I really wanted to know. It seemed as if she were going to crack up and land on the floor laughing.

"I can tell you what it is." She said.

"No… no you can't. He or she is isn't big enough to grow _those_ parts." I tried to reason with her but she just shook her head. "Alright tell me." I hated surprises. Surprises and me never go well together. It always blows up in my face.

She looked at me making sure that I was sure. I nodded again and smiled widely wanting to find out the sex of my baby.

"One of each."

"What do you mean _one of each_?" One of each. That could only mean one thing. "There are two babies growing inside of me?"

She nodded again. I felt tears leak out of the corners of my eyes. I was blessed with not _one_ but _two_ of my miracles.

I couldn't wait to tell Dimitri. I was bursting at the seams with the news. I imagined my son being the exact replica of Dimitri but with my attitude and my daughter with Dimitri's attitude and soft milky brown eyes. But both of them had the wicked hair I have.

I sat down on the bed letting the news finally sink in and settle in my mind, heart and soul. I wanted to find and tell Dimitri right away but I knew he had a shift tonight. I settled for telling home as soon as he came to see me which he promised he would right after another Guardian took over.

"Oh Liss," I hugged her needing to release the joy and happiness through a comforting touch. I needed to be reassured that I had someone in this journey with me. And she was the closest person available. I wish Dimitri was the first person ever to hear this news but obviously that didn't happen.

After rejoicing for a while longer I finally laid in my own bed five hours after curfew. I was so happy I couldn't sleep. All night I kept looking up at my ceiling.

When I started to drift off I quickly woke myself up wanting to be awake when Dimitri came. But when that didn't happen by the middle of the night I started to get worried.

I must have not been able to take the drowsiness because the next thing I knew is that I opened my eyes to the complete darkness. Which signaled the beginning the day following a nocturnal schedule.

I stretched and retched when I felt the nausea in my stomach come to life and make an exit. I barely made it to the bathroom in time. I finished up there and decided to take a quick shower. I was in such a hurry that in an effort to save some time I brushed my teeth while I was in the shower.

I pulled on a tight fitting tank top and high cut shorts. I pulled my hair into a tight high ponytail and stepped into my running shoes. When I walked to the door I stopped in front of full length mirror briefly. I almost cried when I looked down at my stomach and saw a barely noticeable hump. When I got back to my room last night I did some reading on the internet about the pregnancy. Since I had twice the children growing in here I would to start to show sooner. I didn't know how far a long I was but hopefully I could find out at my appointment next week with Dr. Olendzki.

I walked half ran to the gym but stopped when I didn't hear the eighties music Dimitri usually had on every opening. I burst through the doors knowing something was instantly wrong. I was right too. There was no sign of Dimitri anywhere. And I checked everywhere including the showers and the equipment closet. The mats weren't even laid out on the ground and the safety hadn't been taken off of the equipment that we use. I immediately darted out of the gym and circled the building hoping this was an exercise or drill that he wanted me to complete. But I knew I was wrong. Nothing. No sign of my Comrade anywhere. Swirls of sickness were sloshing all around in my stomach and not the nauseating kind.

Maybe he was just a bit late, I thought to myself. Yes that had to be the reason why Dimitri would abandon me._ Abandon_. I didn't even want to think it.

I went back in the gym and sat on the benches waiting him out to see if earlier _was _a drill. It wasn't like Dimitri to _ever_ be late. If anything, he would be there early to make sure he was there on time. When half an hour passed I started to get worried. When an hour passed I started to panic. When two full hours passed I almost fainted from my erratic breathing and the numbness I was feeling all over. I knew something was wrong.

As fast as I could I raced to his room. Maybe he overslept? But as soon as I got near the guardian wing I knew he wasn't there. But I still slammed down the door.

One word. Empty. Nothing. No bed sheets, or picture frames. No books or clothes. I looked in the bathroom too. Nothing there. No sign of life.

**A/N- Okay so you all are probably mad at me for leaving you like this. I would be mad at me too. But have no fear.**

**Why do you think Dimitri left? Tell me what you think…and I might just tell you if you are right. ;)**

**The answer to last chapter's question was** _**humans helped the Strigoi at the Badica residence. **_

**This chapter's question is a bit harder.**_** Can you name all the twelve Royal families?**_

**Can we try for at least 5 reviews before the next update? If we get 40 reviews before next chapter though I'll post a sneak peek of the next chapter!**


	9. Chapter 9

_Previously;_

_One word. Empty. Nothing. No bed sheets, or picture frames. No books or clothes. I looked in the bathroom too. Nothing there. No sign of life. _

This wasn't him just moving to another room in the Academy. This was him moving into another room out of the Academy.

I couldn't help myself when I broke down and sobbed hysterically. I laid down on the bare mattress face in the left behind pillow not caring if my chest killed from the pressure being put on it. I inhaled deep when I smelt the faintest inkling of his aftershave still on it. I breathed in deep, filling my lungs with the scent not caring if it made me feel upset. I needed the right now.

I don't know how long I laid there, crying my heart and soul out. I barely didn't even feel arms picking me up and moving me. I cried and clawed at the arms until they let go of me for the briefest of seconds which I used to run back to the bed and clutch the pillow with all my might before the arms ensnared me once more.

Once again I cried myself to sleep and woke up in surroundings that I have never been in before. I quickly tried to get up pushing past the pain- from what? Don't remember. Two strong hands pushed me back down and I turned my face to stare into the face I've come to regard as a motherly figure to me.

Alberta smiled and me. "Take it easy Rose. We didn't find you in the best of conditions. Luckily the princess was able to heal whatever was wrong with you."

"Lissa?" I asked shocked. Alberta pointed over my head. I turned around and saw the piercing green eyes that were an easily recognizable trait belonging to the Dragomirs'. She gripped my hand and squeezed the life out of it. Handing me a doughnut and a glass of water she told me to eat. I pushed it away feeling repulsed by it. She gave me a worried look and sent through the bond, At least eat it for the babies.

Dread filled my whole body. How could I be so stupid and forget my children. I was going to make a horrible mother. Sensing what I just felt Lissa sent another message through the bond. I don't need to read your mind to tell you what you just thought. You're my best friend and I can instantly tell what's wrong in a heartbeat. You will make the best mother out there that the world has ever seen.

I sent her a look that seemed to say, how are you so sure?

Because you love with your whole heart, the fiercest person I knew and you'll be wholeheartedly dedicated to bring happiness, joy and love to your children.

I smiled and quickly gobbled up the doughnut in my hand.

"Rose," Alberta started and I turned to face her. "I need to know what happened."

I looked down. I didn't want to tell her but I knew I had to. I tried to delay by taking smaller bites and chewing slower.

"Rose, it's alright. Nothing's going to happen. Remember I already know what is going on between you and the one you love." My eyes started to water when she mentioned him. "All I need to know is why Celeste found you in his room crying on his bed."

"He left." I whispered quietly, my voice almost nothing. I heard Lissa gasp and saw Alberta's shock ridden face. "He's gone. He wasn't there for practice this morning so I went to check his rom because I thought he was just a little late which is not usual for him. The minute I walked into the wing I knew something was wrong. He left me. He left us." Us, as meaning the three people who were currently sharing my body. But to Alberta, _us_ would have meant the Academy.

"He only told me he was going out for a couple of hours and he would be back in time for your training. I thought he was going to get something special for you because he kept hinting at it." Alberta sighed to herself. "Oh my, what have we gotten into?"

Lissa gathered me in her arms while I cried once more. Damn I was really getting tired of the crying. And it would only get worse as I got farther along. Alberta needed to know. So when I composed myself, I switched sides to face her.

"I'm pregnant." I said hoarsely. Surprise crossed her face.

"And he's the father?" I nodded.

"Aren't you going to ask how? Or say it's not his."

"No I'm not Rose. I know _you_. I know your character. You wouldn't cheat on him. And you've always been a special girl." She smiled and I felt relieved.

"Are you going to tell him?" She asked.

I pondered this for a moment. I honestly didn't know what the right choice was. I could not tell him and let him go the rest of his life without knowing he fathered two children. And by doing that, deprive my children of their father. They could grow up resenting him of even me. God knows I resented my father. I didn't even know who he was and he didn't even try to make an effort to get to know me.

Or on the other hand, I could tell him. Let him know that he was going to have two of the most beautiful children the grace the Earth. Of course I could be biased. I mean, come on, I was their mother. And they could have a father. Something I want but can never have.

I was pretty sure what I wanted to do. I would tell him and it would be up to him if he wanted to stay of not. I told Alberta I would and whipped out my cell phone, pressing number one, where his number resided in my speed dial.

After 7 rings, the call went to voicemail. I thought I'd never hear his voice again. The one that wrapped me up like a blanket and kept my warm on chilly days.

_This is Dimitri Belikov, I am sorry I can't take your call right now but I'll try to get back as soon as possible._

I called three more times and got voicemail each call. I turned to Lissa and she gave me her phone without a word knowing that was what I needed. I know he was going to expect calls from me and maybe Lissa. But I had to give it a shot. I dialed his number from memory and tried calling twice. Voicemail both times. That told me he was expecting a call from her.

But he wasn't from Alberta. I turned to her willingly and hopeful. She handed me her phone too without a doubt and I dialed his number. I heard the phone pick up on the other end by the fifth ring. I held the phone to my ear and couldn't help it when I let out a sob just knowing that I was going to get a chance to talk to him. I held my fist up to my mouth in an effort to calm myself but it didn't work. And I knew he would know it was me the second it let out the first sob.

"Ro… Roza?" He said stumbling over his words sounding like he didn't believe them.

"Dimitri," I started crying again. Damn these hormones. Just the sound of his voice was enough to trigger a reaction.

"Roza." I let out a strangled cry that sounded somewhat like a yes. I felt Alberta take away the phone and I clawed trying to get my Dimitri back. Lissa took a hold of my arms while Alberta was talking to Dimitri.

"Yes I know Belikov." A response from him made her kept quiet. "Well what do you expect from her? You left her. No goodbye or anything. Did you think she was going to take this calmly?" Alberta snapped.

Alberta didn't even let Dimitri respond before she started raging at him again. "Do you know how I found her? On your fucking bed crying into your fucking pillow sobbing hysterically." Now she was really pissed at him because she started swearing.

"No Belikov." I heard hushed protests that sounded like he was yelling on the other end. Alberta handed me back the phone.

"Dimitri?" I asked quietly still wanting him to be on the other end.

"Yes milaya?" He responded in a quiet voice sounding like he was trying to keep his emotions in check.

"You left me. You left us." I said equally as quiet.

"I know milaya."

"Why?"

"Oh Roza, I didn't want to," he let out a growl of frustration on the other end. "I can't get into it over the phone."

"Dimitri I … need to tell you something."

"What is it milaya?"

"Not over the phone. In person." I didn't want to tell him over the phone and then he made a decision just to come back for the babies and not _me. _Not that I didn't want him to come back period. But if he wanted to, for the right reasons and not just like he had an obligation needed to be filled.

"Okay milaya." I sighed in and out, out of relief.

"I love you," I whispered as quietly as possible for fear that he didn't reciprocate that feeling.

"I love you to milaya. I'll see you soon."

He ended the call and I pulled the phone away from my ear, hands in lap. I unconsciously put one hand on my stomach and rubbed. It was just two months until graduation. I could do this. I was strong enough, even if Dimitri didn't stay. I would do this.

"Rose. About the trials." I looked at Alberta. "You might not be able to take them."

"What?" I almost shouted at her in disbelief. How could she even suggest that sort of thing?

"Well when we get closer to that time we need the go ahead from Dr. Olendzki. I am correct in assuming she's the doctor you are going to?" I nodded yes. "If the baby is growing-"

"Babies." I said proudly. What, I was going to be a mother and I was happy about my children. Better to embrace it than push it away. Alberta smiled and loving smile at me.

"If the babies are growing at a fast rate then they are more likely to get hurt. I don't want you taking that risk so we might have to cut you out of the trials or move them up."

"You can't cut me out! Then how will I graduate?"

"You'll still graduate guaranteed you don't fail any of your classes."

I gave her a mock grin. "I mean, how will I get my promise mark and become Lissa's guardian?"

"That's why I gave you the option of completing your trials early. I can tell you right now, if any other guardian were in my position, then answer would've been you don't get a mark."

That sounded as good as it gets. Alberta has always cared and looked out for me. and I've thanked my lucky stars that she was there for me or I don't know where else I would have been. Probably living in a commune.

"Thank you Alberta." I said appreciatively.

She nodded. "You've always been special to me Rose. Like the daughter I never had."

After the meeting with Alberta, Lissa and I headed back to my room. I took a seat on my bed and hugged my pillow wishing it was Dimitri I was hugging. I took solace in knowing he would be back. Soon. He told me. And I took comfort in knowing he still loved me.

"I want you to tell Sparky." I turned to look at my best friend. Liss, looked at me like I had grown two heads. Her mouth opened and closed twice before vocals came out.

"You want…me to tell Christian?"

"Yes. Is it that hard for you to understand?" I asked. Lissa was quiet.

I got up. "Fine I'll go tell him myself."

"Wait!" She put her hand on my shoulder in an attempt to stop me. I turned around. "Why so you want Christian to know?"

"On the contrary to popular belief I actually care about him. A lot." I felt hurt and disbelief flow through the bond.

"Geez relax Lissa. Not moving in on your man." I put my hands up in a defense maneuver. "He's like a big bro to me and I would really appreciate it if he knew about this so I wouldn't be getting on nerves when these hormones start acting up. Then my cover will be blown and everyone will know I'm pregnant."

"Ahh," Lissa said. I felt a wave of understanding sing through our one-way mental link. "I get it now."

I nodded to her and smiled. "So are you going to tell him or should I?" I asked for the second time.

"I'll tell him. He might not believe you if you tell him. No offence but I almost didn't believe you-"

I started to interrupt.

"No let me finish first. When I saw you puke for the first few times I instantly knew you were pregnant, blame it on spirit. But I didn't want to believe it because I knew you were with Dimitri and he was the only one you would sleep with. I knew two dhampirs couldn't procreate, well obviously that is not true,

and I knew you wouldn't dream odd getting pregnant for fear of what might happen to you and your child's relationship."

"Oh Liss." There was no plausible explanation for what I just felt. Wasn't even to get broken up over but I reached out and hugged her anyways.

"I'll make sure Chris stays in line. No comments that could expose you. I'll have him on best behaviour or else he wouldn't get-"

"Any?" I interrupted with a laugh afterwards. Lissa gave me a disapproving look.

"Rose you know how I feel about you talking about my sex life. It's bad enough that you have to see it. Sometimes."

"Uh try every night when I'm tossing and turning in bed."

Lissa blushed a dark crimson red and looked down at the floor. I had thoroughly embarrassed her.

"Well uh thanks for the tidbit but I gotta go now..." She said a bit shaky. "Homework's calling my name."

"Yeah yeah. Remember God though." I said with a wink and closed my door behind her.

I walked over to my keepsake box and opened other taking out the note Dimitri had given me weeks ago when I had thrown up the first day. I cradled it to my chest and inhaled the scent of aftershave still lingering on it. Crawling into bed with it still clutched in my hand I felt myself give into the drowsiness that threatened to take over.

DPOV

Hanging up on Roza was the hardest thing by far in my life that I've ever had to do. No I take that back. Leaving her in the first place. But I had too. I know she would be safe back at the academy and in the comforting hands of all her friends especially Lissa. I just hoped when I got back she would give me a chance to explain why I did what I did. And maybe understand and forgive me for leaving her.

When Roza called I knew I couldn't pick up because I would make things worse than it was already between us. I knew that just by leaving I had cut her deep. I knew by picking up I would drop everything and go back to her the second she asked me too. She was my world and I promised her I would never leave her but I broke that. If she ever gave me the chance again I vowed to never break promises to her.

Now I'm doing a perimeter check around the house I call home running on a human schedule. Picking up burnt pieces of the fence that used to run along the sides of the house I threw them in the trash and recalled the day I got the phone call from my youngest sister.

_I was on a night shift letting my mind wander to the woman who made me want to be a better man. The center of my universe. Two weeks had passed since she had gotten sick that day in the church. I had given her the past weeks off. No training time, just time to recover even though she didn't need it. Dhampirs rarely got sick if ever and if we did, we healed pretty quickly so believe me when I say what happened to Rose was rare. I wanted to make sure she was okay. _

_My phone rang and I was pulled from my thoughts thinking it was Roza. But it wasn't. It was a number I would know anywhere and anytime- except for Roza's. I had hers memorized and known off of memory. _

_Mama would never be calling me unless something happened. She now used Skype and my family and I would talk for hours on end some nights. _

_Picking up I heard Viktoria's estranged broken up voice in my ear. _

_"Dimka, he's back...and mama...hurt..bruise..couple days...Sonya's baby hurt. Almost burnt...house down. He want...me to come...Dimka please. Help." _

_I almost dropped the phone by the time she had said he' s back. I was in motion and almost done packing before Vika had finished. I just had to get all the toiletries and clear the rest of the room and I was done. That was before I heard a scream and the line cut dead. That was when I had decided I didn't have any more time. I threw everything haphazardly and raced out to the front of the gates hiding my two suitcases in the shade of the trees. I didn't even have time to say goodbye to my love. _

_I talked to the front guards and they let me out. I was on the first flight to Russia that night. All the time in the plane then train to Baia I was tapping my foot anxiously. Can't waiting to get my hands on Randall Ivashkov and finish what I had started almost eleven years ago. _

_When I had gotten home I burst open the door to see my oldest and youngest sister in fighting positions crouched close to the door. My youngest sister had actually tried to pin my thinking I was our father but I easily deflected and restrained her. When she realized it was me she relaxed and pounced on me. The affectionate kind .I held her back just as tight as she hugged me. Karolina who had relaxed from her earlier stance and also jumped on me crying. I hugged both of them and gave them a kiss on their cheeks before I looked around trying to find mama and Sonya. I knew Yeva could hold her own. _

_I heard loud wails upstairs and looked at Karolina figuring it must be Zoya. _

_I went into the kitchen keeping my guard on while Vika stayed by the door just in case. _

_The table was pushed up to the side of the wall and in its place lay my middle sister clutching her very swollen stomach and my mother by her side calming her down and checking up on her since she was a nurse. _

_I fell down to my knees beside both of them and pulled mama into a hug. She rested her head on my shoulder and cried. That's when I knew she was really hurt physically and emotionally. Mama almost never cried. _

_I pulled back and saw the bruises on her arms in the shapes of four finger prints plus a thumb. The skin had started to redden and blister indicating fire had been a component. And only _he _used fire as his elemental magic. I fumed with rage and got up and punched a hole in the nearest wall. _

_Mama immediately got up too and came to look at my hand. It didn't even hurt and there were no signs of broken bones but she still fussed over it. Sonya seemed to have calmed a little but her hands still clutched her stomach like it was her lifeline. Something wet had started pooling around her legs and I had known her water broke. Mama did too. _

_"Dimka pick her up _carefully_ and put her on a bed upstairs. Sonya's not going to give birth on the floor." She said. _

_After a long night and hard birth, a beautiful baby girl, Katya had been born. Her name meant pure. Even though Katya had been three weeks early she was still very healthy. _

_When Sonya was getting cleaned up I was rocking Katya on the rocking chair cooing to her in Russian when my grandmother appeared at the door. _

_"Babushka." I got up to hug her; cradling Katya between us I wrapped one arm around her. She hugged me back them pulled away going to take the spot I was occupying seconds ago. _

_"Dimka. Soon you will have precious miracles. A flower can only stand on her own for so long. Soon she will need the support of the other that makes her stronger." Babushka gave me one of her cryptic messages. Like the one she gave before I talked to Alberta. I still had that ring in my pocket. I hoped I would still get the chance to put it on the finger of the one I loved. Sensing my thoughts she gave me another message looking me directly in my eye. "The time has changed. To realize the truth, a promise is to be made and kept. This truth will be accepted. Now give me my great grandchild. I want to hold her." _

_Almost mechanically I walked over to her placing Katya in her waiting arms. When Katya was firmly and safely in Babushka's arms I went to my room and sat down on the bed trying to figure out what my grandmother meant. I knew she was talking about Roza. I knew the promise meant me proposing to her. I didn't know about the miracles. _

And know I stood here just getting off the phone with her. I hadn't picked up Lissa's calls too because I knew they were Rose. But I took a chance on Alberta. I didn't think Rose would go to her. Most likely she would though after pondering on the thought longer. I mean, Alberta knew about our relationship and she was okay with it.

I almost cried when I heard her hiccup and sob. I was pulled away from that when Alberta had started yelling at me for being so stupid and idiotic. She then proceeded to tell me the condition in which she- or should I say Celeste- found Rose.

I had promised Roza I would be back soon. And soon I would. I planned to stay at home for a couple more days then call Zmey to take care of Anton for me if he didn't show up while I was here.

I couldn't bear to be away longer than necessary from Rose. An epiphany slept over me. I was at home but I wasn't at _home. _I needed to get back to her as fast as I could because I just understood that I'm never truly home unless Roza is by my side.

**A/N- Oh my God. I am so so sorry you all had to wait sooo long for this chapter especially when I said I would update as soon as I got those three reviews from the sneak peek but life has gotten in the way. I hope this chapter made up for it though. **

**_The twelve Royal families are; Dragomir, Badica, Conta, Ozera, Tarus, Dashkov, Voda, Lazar, Drozdov, Zeklos, Szelsky, and Ivashkov! (Just a tidbit for y'all, these families are in order from smallest to largest in clan members!)_**

**This chapter's question is; what is the Nightengale?**

**Disclaimer- Richelle Mead owns the wonderful world of VA and unfortunately Dimitri. **

**You guys were awesome with the reviews! Can we try for 7 before the next update? Maybe?**

**See you next update. Don't forget to review!**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Hiya**_

_**Just a quick AN before the start of this chapter. Huge thanks to my beta Mitrioselove and lemon writer. Couldn't have done it without you!**_

_**You should go check out her stories. They are amazing, now onto the chapter…**_

_Previously;_

_I couldn't bear to be away longer than necessary from Rose. An epiphany swept over me. I was at home but I wasn't at home. I needed to get back to her as fast as I could because I just understood that I'm never truly home unless Roza is by my side._

RPOV

It's been two weeks and I've gotten nothing. Nothing but an empty feeling within me. Dimitri had not come back yet, and worse I had gotten no phone call. Not even a text. I was beginning to lose faith and my hope was diminishing rather quickly. How could he do this, he had promised. Had he just said those things to shut me up? I was so desperate for the comfort of the one that I loved; I started to cry myself to sleep the first week after I had talked to him on the phone.

I had started to mope around, not feeling like going to any of my classes, though that was not as uncommon with me. If it weren't for the ones that cared the most, Liss or Mason, I would have never left the confines of my room. Though those times were not common. I would just stay in my room, sleeping or staring at the ceiling letting my mind wander. Crying. Retching my guts up.

The morning sickness had only become worse as time passed. Liss had tried to heal it, thinking she could but she couldn't. And I kinda didn't want her too. I wanted to experience the whole pregnancy, without any interference because if this really was a one in a lifetime thing, I wanted to endure this chapter of my life fully and truly. Odd, yes I know, but it was true.

It was now morning and the start of the day for classes, classes I did not want to go to. Alberta hadn't even bothered and let me stay in my room so far but I did not know if she could put up with this for much longer. I think she was hoping that he would be back soon. Very soon. She could only cover for me for so long before someone started asking too many questions.

I had cried myself to sleep last night and didn't give into the exhaustion until early this morning. These hormones were going to be the death of me, I swear. Dr. Olendzki had only said they would get worse during the nine months, or less. She said I was due earlier; the rate my children were growing at was fascinating, really. Nobody really knows why though, Dr. Olendzki said she'd do some research. She said the only plausible explanation is who they were conceived by. And by that, I mean two dhampirs. She has to keep a constant check on them though, to make sure nothing happens so I have a checkup every week.

When I woke up, it was due to a churning I had in my stomach. Pulling the covers off of myself, I raced to the washroom where I now kept the door opened permanently just in case, and emptied the remnants of last night's dinner into the bowl. That was another thing now, I didn't go to the cafeteria anymore. Lissa or Mason would usually bring my food to my room. I had not told Mason yet what was wrong with me though he had tried to weasel it out from me on several occasions, but I was still to afraid to let too many people know. Especially since I had not even told Dimitri.

I was honestly surprised he hadn't noticed because if you looked very closely, you could see that I was already showing. But I always wore baggy clothes, loose t-shirts and sweatpants. In fact one of Dimitri's shirts that I had- stole it from him when he was in the gym showers one day- I was now using as my pillowcase, pathetic yes, but hey I was hormonal and desperate. My hair was always up in a knot, pieces and strands constantly falling down and hanging in my face. I looked like a human who had the flu. Horrible really. My eyes were red and puffed from all the crying I've done. I thought I would have run out of tears by now, but it truly was amazing that they just kept on flowing.

I checked my phone every five minutes, hoping for some sign. A text, a missed call, anything. Lissa was too, just in case, though I knew she only did it to make me feel better. Sometimes if I felt up to it, I would text with her during class and if something really saucy was happening, she'd pull me into her head on purpose. Of course sometimes that would happen when I was in a really grouchy mood and it would worsen the grouchiness. Mason had actually said I could rival Oscar the Grouch. I kicked him out promptly and didn't speak to him for a couple days.

I went back to my bed where I crawled underneath the covers and put my earphones in, full well knowing it would somehow calm me. I pressed play on my phone and listened to the music that had come from it. It had gotten so frantic that I had downloaded country and eighties music for the comfort that came from knowing somewhere Dimitri might be even listening to these songs.

Right now it was on Die of A Broken Heart by Carolyn Dawn Johnson. This was the first song that I had downloaded. Without even previewing it I had pressed download while I was wallowing. The title had been perfect for what I was feeling, and it was even more perfect when I heard the lyrics. But I desperately didn't want them to be true. For long anyways, I needed my Dimitri back before I truly did fall apart.

As I listened to the words flow through my ears, I let my mind wander.

_Take me fast or take me slow,  
I don't really care how I go.  
In the daylight, or in the dark,  
Just don't let me die of a broken heart._

The kinda pain that you just can't take,  
That sends a strong man to his grave.  
There's not a pill that can give you rest,  
Or fill that hole deep in your chest.

Though this wasn't the full song, it was what described me the most. When I had found that room empty, I literally had died. I feared I had lost him forever, that I would never see him again. Feeling no sign of life had brought me to my knees. I sat on the floor, sobbing, struggling for every breath. I felt like I had dropped two hundred pounds on my chest. My lungs were constricting and it was getting painful for me to keep a clear airway. I was suffocating from myself.

I had fallen to the floor and tucked myself into a fetal position wishing that death would come to me. Because at that moment, I honestly though death was the only way I was going to survive. It was melodramatic I knew that much but the pain was indescribable. In that moment I understood why Lissa had started cutting herself in the first place.

With an enormous amount of strength I had crawled onto the bed. I stuffed my face in the pillow hoping it would suffocate me easier. By this point my breaths had been coming in short pants almost a minute apart. I wished for death. My chest felt like someone had hacked through it with a chainsaw then ripped my heart out holding it in front of me while sticking a stake through it and twisting painfully slow. And they didn't even bother to stitch the skin back together. It was horrible. Then Celeste found me. I had tried to fight her but the attempt was futile given the state I was in.

I visibly shuddered and pulled the headphones out of my ears when I heard a knock on the door. I was ready to give whoever it was a piece of my mind. Seriously, Alberta had told all the matrons on the dhampir floor to not let anyone except those who I gave permission to come through and visit me. So far that had only been Lissa and Mason. I hadn't seen anyone else since, I didn't want to have to deal with all the bullshit.

I threw on some clothes, not really caring what I wore. This morning when I woken up I had also felt way better than I was feeling in a long time. I had a feeling, a feeling in my gut that something was going to happen today. I decided to go jogging, try to get back into the normal routine of things. Alberta had even offered to train me while he was gone and I had started to get my mojo back. I had declined politely, not ready to face the place where we had shared so much. I wasn't going to be ready for a while.

A baggy top covered my upper body and I was just about to slip on my shorts when an impatient knock flew over my door for the second time. My shorts were plain black gymnastic ones that I had obtained when Liss and I were in Portland. My top didn't show off my already there bump off. I didn't want anyone seeing it, _yet_. I was roughly about a month and a half to two months along, but it was hard to tell at the growth of these babies. I was going off the time they were conceived. Although even that was hard to go off by because it could have happened throughout the period of a month.

Whipping my hair into a quick ponytail, I secured the elastic while I turned the door knob with my armpit and pushed it open with my foot. I looked up to see who it was. I couldn't help it, I fainted at the sight.

DPOV

When I saw Roza faint, everything went chaotic in my mind. With my fast reflexes and lightning speed I caught Roza before she hit the floor and carried her into her room shutting the door behind me with my foot. I honestly didn't care if anyone saw me. All that was on my mind was her. I had tunnel vision only for Roza, worried about why she had fainted. I laid her down on her bed and sat on the edge holding one of her hands in both of mine. I brought it up slowly and kissed it, leaving my lips there for a moment longer than necessary. I stroked the side of her face and tucked the strands loose behind her ears.

Having gone so long without her I couldn't resist myself. I leant down gently, careful not to place my weight on her and placed a small kiss on those lips that have haunted me for the entire time I've been away. They had haunted me since the day I had first laid eyes on them. I kept mine against her unmoving ones, slowly kissing her.

My cheeks felt wet and I pulled back, looking into those beautiful big brown eyes that tears leaked from the sides of. I reached up my thumbs to wipe them away but she grabbed my hand using it to muffle the sobs that were now wracking her body. I knew Rose had grown close to me, but this was her being so much more emotional. I used my free hand and pulled her close to my chest letting my own silent tears fall. She collapsed in my arms and rested her head on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry for ruining your shirt." That sweet, pure, angelic voice softly said.

"Roza, that's the least of my worries. I love you."

"I-I…love...yo-you too." She said stumbling over her words because her breathing still wasn't normal even though the sobs had stopped.

"I love you Roza. Never doubt that. I'll never leave you again. If you'll let me in again?" I kissed her temple and felt her chuckling.

She turned up to look at me. Roza looked me straight in the eyes and held a hand on either side of my face, holding my gaze with hers. "But if you ever leave me again without even telling me, then you can go to hell because that's where you'll find me."

I looked at her, sad about what I had caused her to go through. I never thought I had this effect on her. I closed my eyes and tried to steady my breathing because I was getting pissed fast. And it was only directed at myself. I knew by my absence, Roza would be hurting because it's exactly what I would do if our positions had been reversed. I pinched the bridge of my nose, still trying to calm myself. Roza rubbed my arms affectionately, trying to placate me knowing I was angry. I relaxed into her touch.

"How...how bad was it while I was gone?" I asked, my eyes still shut, I was still too scared to meet her broken brown eyes.

"I'm not going to lie. It was pretty bad. At a couple points I wanted to kill myself because I thought death would escape the pain." She told me in all honesty. That's one thing I loved about Rose. No matter how bad it was, she would always tell me the truth instead of sparing me.

"Oh Roza," I leant down and kissed her with everything I had in me. Our lips sealing, signifying a promise that I would spend forever trying to keep. She responded with the same enthusiasm that I showed and our lips seared together. Her tongue darted out, tracing the outline of my lips, begging for me to grant her entrance. I was happy to oblige and let Rose take control.

Her tongue plunged into my mouth and was met with mine. The feeling sending a shiver through both of our bodies. Her's searched around, tasting, causing my insides to turn. I buried my hands deep into her hair and her were on my shoulders, trying to keep herself steady. She placed one of her knees on either of my sides and slightly rocked us. I helped her a bit by rolling over onto my back since I was lying on my side. Rose was now hovering above me. But that wasn't good enough for her. She pulled us up so we were kneeling on the bed. Our bodies were pressed close and I pulled her even closer. When she broke away for air, she rested her forehead on my shoulder and I placed opened mouthed wet kisses all over her neck and throat. Anywhere that I could get access.

I dropped us back on the bed so Rose was lying on top of me. Her body covering mine like a shadow. Our legs and arms were pressed together and Rose's head was on my chest, right on my heart.

"It beats only for you." I stroked the side of her face gently and she reached out holding my hand to her cheek, nuzzling into it. She looked into my eyes, very seriously.

"Dimitri, I have to tell you something." She said in an austere manner. I focused all my attention onto her and nodded for her to begin.

"I visited Dr. Olendzki." I stayed quiet wondering where this conversation was going, worried that something could be wrong and I had not been here for her. She continued with a shake of her head, as if trying to clear her mind. "She told me some interesting and life changing news." Roza looked down at our intertwined hands and started fidgeting with them.

"Roza…what is it?" I asked getting worried, was it bad. Had me leaving caused her even more damage than I knew.

"Dimitri…a miracle happened." She looked up at me, eyes shining bright with hope.

"What is it milaya moya?" I was feeling very excited, now noticing she bore good news for me.

"As long as there is a parent with spirit induced abilities in their bloodline, dhampirs can reproduce." Roza said smiling up at me.

I felt like I had been slammed into by a eighteen wheeler. My face fell slack from the shock. I could finally get the impossible with the one I love. I felt overjoyed and elated. Nothing could be better than this. A child of our own.

Rose mostly likely mistook my facial expression for being disgusted by the news- which I don't even know why for- because she had started to slowly inch her way away from me and a tear leaked out her eye.

I felt my own fall down freely down my face. I hastily wiped them away but they couldn't stop. I reached blindly through the blurriness of my eyes for Rose. I grabbed her and pulled her close to my body, burying my head in the cook of her neck. I was wetting her neck, but she didn't care because she pulled me tighter and I felt wetness drip down the back of my neck, indicating that her own tears were falling.

I pressed my lips to hers, hard and fast. Trying to convey how much love and happiness I was feeling. I pulled back resting my forehead on hers. "I love you Roza. You don't know how happy I am that this is possible. To have a child with you is a dream come true."

"I love you Dimitri. I want to be able to give you the one thing you couldn't have with me. I want to have your children." She smiled through her tears and wore a look of shock almost like she could not believe I was taking the news so well.

I gave her another kiss. This time it was sweeter and softer. I trailed pecks down her neck and sucked gently on her shoulder. "Roza…"

"I love you Dimitri. Forever."

"As I love you Roza. Forever and always." The ring inside my jean pocket was starting to feel heavy and I had a feeling this was the right time to ask.

"Dimitri?" I looked up at my love's questioning face. "I have something I need to tell yo- oh my god." She raced to the toilet and emptied her stomach, dry heaving.

I held her hair out of her face and rubbed her back gently. "Dimitri I feel nauseous, it's weird. Not like usual nausea." I pulled her up and into my arms. Placing her on the bed I pulled out my phone because it started to ring.

I looked down and saw that it was Alberta. It must have been serious since she told me no one would be interrupting us when I came into see her when I came back. Least of all her. I quickly picked up.

"Belikov." I answered. As I waited for Alberta's calm voice to come across I started to tuck Rose in who was now lying on her pillow, eyes closed and drifting off.

Her voice was anything but calm. It was cold and hard as she said, "Buria."

**A/N: Yay! An update!**

**I AM SO SORRY THAT IT'S BEEN TWO WEEKS WITHOUT AN UPDATE! But I promise the next chapter will be up as soon as possible. It's already written and it just needs to be beta-d. I CAN PROMISE AND SWEAR TO GOD THAT I WILL NEVER EVER ABANDON A STORY NO MATTER HOW LONG THE WAIT BETWEEN UPDATES IS!**

**Leave your thoughts in a review because I would love to hear what's going through your mind! **

_The answer to last chapter's questions is; the Nightengale is a club in St. Petersburg Russia! This chapter's question is:_

_What is the brand of the car Sydney drove to the Baia with Rose in Blood Promise? (It's a little harder I know ;))_

_**Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all VA content and I own nothing but the plot!**_

**Let's try for 13 before the next update! If we get 13, I will beg my beta to hurry so I can post!**

**Thanks for reading! Hope you liked! And remember to review! **

**I love reading them! If you guys have any questions about what's been posted so far, or you're unclear, just tell me and I'll be happy to give you an answer! Also if you're unsure about the course of the story but no, before you ask, I won't tell you every single detail but I can hint at it. Then your curious mind can go to work! ;) **


	11. Chapter 11

_Previously;_

"_Dimitri?" I looked up at my love's questioning face. "I have something I need to tell yo- oh my god." She raced to the toilet and emptied her stomach, dry heaving. _

_I held her hair out of her face and rubbed her back gently. "Dimitri I feel nauseous, it's weird. Not like usual nausea." I pulled her up and into my arms. Placing her on my bed I pulled out my phone because it started to ring. _

_I looked down and saw that it was Alberta. It must have been serious since she told me no one would be interrupting us when I came into see her when I came back. Least of all her. I quickly picked up. _

"_Belikov." I answered. As I waited for Alberta's calm voice to come across I started to tuck Rose in who was now lying on her pillow, eyes closed and drifting off. _

_Her voice was anything but calm. It was cold and hard as she said, "Buria."_

"Where?" I asked.

"My office. Bring Rose." She ended the call, quickly and I knew I had to hurry it up. I went over to Rose and picked her up.

"Baby, wake up for my please." I was standing at her door with her in my arms bridal style, head and arms close to my chest. She opened her eyes for me, but just barely.

"Dimitri? What's wrong?" She asked, worried. Her brown eyes opened wider as she took me in, I was having a hard time masking to fear and worry that was coursing through my body.

"Baby I need you to put your arms around my neck and hold on." She just stared at me, but did nothing what I asked of her.

"Dimitri what's wrong? I'm getting scared." Her brown eyes spoke the truth and I knew now was not the time to tell her. I had to keep her safe.

"Shh I know Roza. Just trust me please?" She nodded. "I'll take away your fears and keep you safe. I'll always keep you safe." Once she locked her arms around my neck and buried her face in my chest, I took off at a run to Alberta.

I burst through her door where I was surprised to see Lissa and Christian. Lissa walked up to me and slapped me. I was shocked from it; the small moroi did not look like she would ever do such a thing. Though it didn't hurt, I was still dumbfounded at the action. She pointed her finger at me and said, "Don't you ever dare do that to Rose again or I swear…I'll…I'll make your life hell."

I was taken aback from the tone that she used. I never would've thought Lissa would do something like that. She was usually so calm and collected. But I knew her well too. Just like Rose she cared deeply, and fought for those she loved.

"Man that was so not cool. What you did to Rose? You almost killed her and I almost lost a sister." I looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it had come from Christian. "Dude if you ever pull a stunt like that again-" He let the sentence hang and in his hand a glowing deep blue fire ball had appeared. "Rose doesn't deserve that." He said finishing.

"Belikov," I turned to Alberta glad for the distraction, who had started to speak to me. "The wards have been breached and we have all the knowledge to believe humans have been working with the Strigoi. Alto found a stake stuck in the grounds were wards are placed a couple minutes ago during his shift. We have guardians lined up at the front gate and any other open areas that Strigoi could possibly enter the academy through.

I want you to do perimeter checks around the entire academy constantly reporting back. Rose will stay here with Lissa and Christian. Give her a couple stakes just in case. I'm calling in Castile. Ashford will be on the elementary floor along with Meredith and Ryan. Rose and Eddie excluding Mason are the two best novices here and they will ensure the safety of the Princess and Lord Ozera."

"Wait Alberta!" Lissa yelled out as Alberta started to walk out. She turned back to face the Princess. "What about Rose's situation?"

What situation? My stomach started to flip in uneasiness and I looked over to Lissa in apprehension.

"Rose hasn't told you?" I shook my head no fervently. She looked down at Rose who was desperately trying to fake she was being asleep. Seems like Lissa bought it but I didn't and neither did Alberta.

"Nothing to worry about at this moment." Lissa said absentmindedly. "I'm sure she had a good reason for not telling you yet."

Alberta coughed bringing the attention back to her. "Belikov wake Rose up and I'll go find Castile. Explain the situation and when I come back I expect to find you gone." With that she left.

RPOV

"Roza wake up," Dimitri said, gently nudging me. I heard everything whilst I was pretending to be asleep. I moaned faking a stir. "Roza I know you're awake."

"Damn." I said jumping down from Dimitri, I should have known better than to think he would be fooled. "Before you say anything, I've heard everything so I don't need to be briefed. Hand me the stakes. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of two Moroi. And I'll have Eddie."

He looked at me, studying my face. He knew I was trying to avoid the situation where he asked what kind of situation I was in. Before that could happen though, I pressed my lips to his, to reassure him that I was and would be alright. I also did not need him worried about me, when he had to take care of himself. He responded eagerly, picking me up and hugging me tightly. I hung off his neck like a monkey, a small giggle leaving me.

"Go comrade. I'll be alright and I promise I'll explain everything when we're together again. And so will you." He nodded knowing what I was talking about. We still hadn't talked about why he left in the first place. "Just remember to make your way back to us." I said placing a hand on my stomach, hoping it would give some sort of indication.

"I love you," I whispered against his lips as I gave him one final kiss. A kiss to seal our love and determination to find each other again. He pulled back and reached in his coat pocket producing three stakes and his keys. I stared at him with wide eyes and I took the outstretched weapons.

"Who carries three stakes with them?" I asked still with wide eyes.

Dimitri smiled at me and answered with no trace of humor, "For emergencies."

He walked over to one of the floor to ceiling safes. He opened the door and was greeted with another. He too unlocked that one and I peered further hoping to get a glimpse of what was so important that it needed two high security doors plus an eye scan to get through.

I followed Dimitri up to the door where he stopped me. "You can't get any further. The system won't recognize you and it'll send a signal to every guardian that someone has broken in." I nodded and settled for just looking in. He looked into the device and it scanned his retina. An automated voice rang out and alerted us that his access was granted.

He moved into the room and I had a chance to see what was behind everything. When I saw it, I gasped and my mouth dropped open. Dimitri looked back at my current facial position and chuckled winking at me. Him and his damn guardian secrets.

On each wall, hooks were placed in an array with stakes hanging on each by a holster. There must have been at least six hundred. "Every year we restock. At graduation, each novice is given a stake and we need at least two hundred extra in case we ever had an attack like this." Dimitri said, picking a couple stakes of the wall.

In neat rows, carts were placed filled with deadly looking swords and gallons of gasoline. One full rack was dedicated to matches. Each sword was different. Some long, some short. Hilts were made in all sizes and variations so it would fit the user to a tee. Same like the stakes though they were all the same size in length. Some were thicker than others and the hilts were different for the stakes.

Dimitri now examined the stakes he had grabbed, testing them by throwing them in the air to see if it was a good fit for him. After trying a few he settled on them and slipped them into his duster. He went over to the matches and grabbed a pack of about a hundred, stuffing those too into his coat. Going back to the wall he picked up a couple more stakes and brought them over to me where he told me to test them out.

I did so quickly and decided on the one that worked well with me best. It was almost as if it had been made for me. I kept the other stakes, and then Dimitri and I walked back to the front room where Eddie was now standing on guard by the door. He quickly noticed our presence and relaxed a little but not a whole lot. Dimitri tossed him two stakes and asked him to try them out like I had. Eddie settled on one that was a bit thicker than mine and had almost no hilt whereas my stake's hilt had a hilt similar to a sword where it being a handle and place to hold underneath. Which made it easier to slide into the heart.

Once weapons were all settled and the safe securely closed again, Dimitri walked to the door ready to go do his job. I ran up to him and hugged him tight, giving him a hard kiss; not caring of Eddie saw us.

"I love you. Please come back to me." I whispered against his lips. I was scared and worried, but I had to trust that he could take care of himself.

"Always, nothing will separate us again. I love you to Roza; stay safe." He gave me another quick kiss and hard hug then was out the door. I looked over to my friends and saw that Lissa had the widest smile on her face. _I'm so happy for you Rose! You guys are so cute and in love!_ I heard through the bond.

"Thanks Liss," I said out loud. She squealed and grabbed onto Sparky's arm jumping up and down. I knew she was scared and worried; this was just her way of trying to keep calm.

"Christian aren't they just so sweet?" she asked him. Green eyes wide and lips pouting.

"Yeah yeah, they're so sweet. So sweet I think I have to go brush my teeth before I have to visit the dentist." He smirked. Lissa smacked his arm and I laughed.

"Oh Chris…" I looked over to Eddie to see his wide open mouth and questioning look. I forgot he was not fully informed.

"Hey Eddie? Close your mouth before you catch flies."

"What…what just happened Rose?" He asked slightly getting mad.

"Well what you just saw," I said, bored. He just stared at me. "Dimitri and I are in love. Ed, please."

"Rose, I…well I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later." Now I was the one to take up his previous expression.

"What do you mean?" I asked, genuinely wanting to know.

"Well, I saw the way the two of you were getting closer during your practices and the way you were broken up when he left. Rose, those things just don't happen. There had to be a reason why." I thought we had done a good job of hiding it. Apparently not. "And to everyone else, it would just look like you two were friends but I know you Rose. And you could see the way Guardian Belikov became less aloof when around you and his regular stoic self when you're not around."

"Oh…"

"Rose I'm happy for you. You've been down since…Spokane. Wait was this going on while you and Mason…? Did you lead him on?"

"Of course I would never! The day you, him and Mia left, I ended things with Mason. He didn't deserve to be lead on by me especially when I was still hung up over Dimitri." I said solemnly.

Anyone in this room could tell it was hard for me to speak about Mason. Eddie was the first to come up and hold me. I was feeling down and with these new pregnancy hormones, the feeling just intensified. Lissa and even Christian followed suit in giving me hugs. They must have known I was close to a break down, and that was not something we needed.

Lissa looked at me questioningly and I heard the question sing loud through the bond. She wanted to know why Dimitri still didn't know that I was pregnant with his children.

"Liss, there was no time too." I answered out loud. Eddie and Christian both looked at me skeptically, no doubt wondering what was the part of the conversation they were missing out on. I ignored them and returned my gaze back to Lissa to answer her next question which was why wasn't there any time.

"Honestly we didn't get to it. When Dimitri showed up at my door I literally fainted and when I woke up…well we did what you and Chris do in the church attic." Lissa blushed and Christian glared at me to which I returned with an eye roll.

"After that I proceeded to tell him that two dhampirs could get pregnant. That we could have a child."

"Wait what?!" I looked over to Eddie where he had yelled and now was turning red with rage.

"Calm down Eddie. Wait until you hear the full story before you judge." I was trying to calm him down. Eddie nodded reluctantly and sunk back in his seat waiting to hear the rest.

"After I told him, we were rejoicing together and then I felt nauseous. But not the kind you're thinking of." I knew she and Christian would know what I'm talking about. She nodded and motioned for me to continue.

"After Dimitri had carried me back to my bed, he got the call from Alberta and we rushed here." I finished and I knew Eddie still had a bunch of questions. I prepared myself to answer them.

"Eddie," I began. "I didn't think it was possible. We'd already done it multiple times. We didn't use any protection because I thought I knew I couldn't get pregnant. Eddie, after a few weeks I started to feel weird and I began throwing up. A lot."

Eddie nodded slowly, probably guessing where this conversation was heading. "I went to Dr. Olendzki. Eddie, I'm pregnant." I said the last part slowly.

Eddie pinched the bridge of his nose, turning to the side a bit and sighing deeply. "Hey dude?" Christian said to him. "I had the same reaction. I wanted to kill him. Whoever it was. Then Lissa told me it was Dimitri. And that he had left. And I got super pissed. I wanted to hunt him down and kill him when I found him."

"Glad to know you care so much Christian." I said, in all honesty.

"Rose, I know that we may not act like it but I care for you deeply. You're like a sister to me and I don't want anything to happen to you." I could not help but have my chest tighten. I had a lot more friends than I thought I did.

"If that's your subtle way of saying you love me, in a sibling way, then I love ya too big bro." I got up and hugged him. "But if you ever make fun of me when I get all fat then I will kill you and make sure there are no little Dragomirs running around and I know how much Lissa wants children."

I then proceeded to tell Eddie and by default Christian, all the details of what the 411 was with Dimitri and I. from the start when he brought us back to the academy.

* * *

Eddie and my guard never dropped. After finding out about my pregnancy, Eddie had taken up to guarding me too. Albeit he thought I didn't know. I was too tired to put up a fight after everything that had happened. I clenched and unclenched my hand around the stake, one in each hand. I stood by the window while Eddie took a position by the door. Lissa and Christian were huddled, in a corner on the floor. Lissa was turned into Christian's chest who had his arms wound around her tight, reassuring her that it would be alright.

My stomach started flipping; and it wasn't me wanting to throw up or my children moving around, making their presence known. It was like in my room earlier, just before Alberta had called warning us about the...strigoi. A different kind of fear coursed through me, and I wondered what was going to happen next.

I felt as if the air had been knocked out of me. "Oh my god..." I doubled over trying to stop the nausea from flowing through me.

"Rose! Are you alright? The babies?" Lissa said frantically, running over to me ready to use her magic if I needed healing. I waved her off.

"I'm fine but you're not. Get in the room and stay there no matter what happens." My hands were placed on her shoulders and I was looking her straight in the eyes. I knew Lissa had a hard time listening sometimes, but this time she had to.

"Rose...Rose what's going on? You're scaring me." Lissa was now crying freely.

I grabbed her in a tight hug. "Don't worry; I won't let anything happen to you. I'm your guardian right?" I said trying to put on a brave face even though I was scared as hell. Not for myself but the ones growing in my stomach, for those around me I cared so much for.

"Can you at least tell me what's going on? I can handle it?" Lissa asked her chin still on my shoulder.

"Remember shadowkissed Anna?" She nodded. "Well she could sense strigoi who were nearby. I think I can too." She gasped. "Now go into the room and don't come out until I come and get you. Don't make a noise." I gently shoved her in the right direction, but she was not budging as quickly as I would have wanted.

"Wait Rose!" She ran back to me and grabbed me in an embrace so tight that the force almost knocked me to my knees. "Be careful. I love you." Her words echoed through my mind as did her emotions.

"I love you too." I gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Sisters for life. Now go," she gave me one more squeeze and left, giving me once last smile as she walked backwards into the room.

I turned to the other moroi in the room. "Go Christian. She needs you. And no I won't let you fight because what would happen to Lissa if both of us die? Go Christian. I'll be fine. I have Eddie. Love you too." I said before he even got the chance to let any words fall from his mouth.

"I'm staying here Rose, like it or not." He said defiantly.

I charged up to him but stopped at a hair's breath away with my stake pointed at him. Blunt side facing me.

"Now you listen here Ozera," I whispered in a low deadly voice. "You are going to go in there and if that means I have to drag your body in there myself, I won't think twice."

"No," he said with a smirk.

"You asked for it Fireball." I walked over to him and pulled him towards the door with all my might. He actually stumbled forward and I took that as my chance to grab him by the collar and drag him to the door. I closed it behind me shaking my head at his stubbornness.

Walking back out I turned to Eddie, "Get ready. There's almost here." Eddie and I stood back to back in the center of the room, circling.

A loud bang pulsated through the door and I stood straighter, getting ready. If this was it I was going to give it my all.

Simultaneously, the door broke open the same time as the windows shattered. About 10 pairs of red eyes filled my view. I immediately threw myself into the techniques that Dimitri and I had practiced for the past couple months. I caught the first two by surprise and my stake slid easily through the ribs and sternum, entering the heart and causing immediate death.

I looked over to see how Eddie was doing. He had already taken down two by himself so that meant they were six strigoi left. I made sure not to hesitate and picked my next target.

I quickly engaged in fighting with a brunette girl who by her way of blocking and exchanging blows had been a guardian turned. I made sure to protect my stomach as much as I could making it my number one priority. She let out a shriek as she fell on top of me. I sidestepped quickly evading her lunge.

"Thanks." I said to Eddie as he slid his stake out from her back. Eddie and I had resumed our earlier position, fighting back to back. Because of the lack of sleep and my tiredness from the past weeks, I fast grew exhausted but I did not dare show any weakness.

After what seemed like a long time, we were down to two red eyed monsters. I was starting to feel lucky, and then I felt intense heat. I whipped around to see a strigoi behind me, on fire.

I quickly used that time where he wasn't paying attention to drive my stake through his cold, undead heart.

"Damn," I heard from a very familiar snarky tone. I looked over to see Christian panting, doubled over with his hands on his knees.

"What the hell are you doing Ozera?" I yelled at him. "Do you want to get killed? Do you have a death wish?"

"He was going for your stomach!" He yelled back, the energy used almost draining the last bit of him. "I couldn't let that happen. He was going to kill you and don't deny it Rose. I saw it so step down and accept defeat."

I sagged knowing he was right. If it wasn't for Chris then my children would've been hurt or worse, maybe even dead and I would've never forgave myself for that. "Thank you Christian."

Eddie was struggling with the last strigoi in the room. His hair was blond and had icy blue eyes. From his build, he was moroi before he awakened. His lean moroi structure was now packed with muscle in his strigoi form.

His devious smile found its way over to my face and I shuddered at the intensity and rawness of the smile. A smile that said I know something you don't. Strigoi were always in the know, the problem was they never said what they knew.

He could've easily overpowered Eddie. He was just toying with him, playing with him, tiring him out. All the while his eyes never strayed too far from my face, or my stomach. I curled my arms protectively around my middle, hoping my arms could keep it safe if all else failed.

He swiftly threw Eddie and he hit a wall moaning at the brutality of the impact. I gasped and he advanced towards me. As quickly as he made his way towards me, I had a ring of fire surrounding me.

The strigoi laughed and halted, millimeters from the lethal flames. "What a pity. If I was still a weak weak moroi, I could've easily gotten rid of this. You see I mastered in water. So this would've been a piece of cake but I dare say, the power and the ease in which comes by being in my awakened state, I wouldn't trade for anything. That is why it is our mission to awaken the world, one at a time. Moroi, dhampir and even human. There will only be one species roaming this earth-"

"Go to hell," I interrupted, my voice cold and fatal. "Oh wait; you already have a permanent residence." I sneered the last part.

"As I said," he continued as if I had never spoken. "One species roaming the earth starting with those." He smirked like Satan himself while he pointed to my stomach.

"Go rot! You'll never get close to my niece and nephew!" Christian yelled.

The strigoi laughed harder. "You a weak willed moroi against me? I wish I could live to see the day."

"I'll sho-"

"Now just shut up," the strigoi made a cutting off motion to Christian. "Now onto it. It will be the strongest of the strongest. Even at such a young age!" He looked like he wanted to jump for joy.

"But it looks as if you won't survive the birth. Too strong you see? See in a couple months you will deliver, say about four to five depending on the parents."

"You will never get close enough to take them!"

"Ahh the more the merrier!" He mock squealed. I had unconsciously let it slip that two children were on the way. "Now we will be unstoppable."

"Never." I swore.

"Well looks like this tea party has lost all its...well it's lost it. Until next time, which I assure you there will be. Soon."

With that, the blond haired and blue eyed monster jumped out of the window. I told Chris to let up on the flames and as soon as they had died out I rushed over to Eddie who was still unconscious on the floor by the wall. I checked to see if he still had a pulse. I placed my hand on his neck and faintly felt a beat.

I didn't feel nauseous anymore I ran over to the door where Lissa was hiding. I yanked it open and Lissa fell into my arms.

"By god Rose." She cried in relief on my shoulder. I rubbed her back in soothing circles while looked at Christian who was trying to pull Eddie back into consciousness.

"Shh, it's alright now. You're safe. We're all safe. They're gone and we're okay." I tried to calm her. I stroked and ran my fingers through her hair like I did in Portland whenever she had that nightmare.

"I thought...I thought that they had done something. Geez I feel so useless not doing anything! If I could use my powers for something else." She stared at her hands, but not for long because a forced her to look at me.

"Liss you are most definitely not useless." She gave me a questioning look.

"And...and what about the children? You have to tell hi-"

"I know Liss, I will tonight. Nothing will ever touch them. I'd sooner die than have my children turn."

I squeezed her tight one last time and released her into Christian's waiting arms. She flew into them and he caught her with great ease that would only come from knowing one so well.

Making myself useful, I walked around the room to see if the strigoi had left any evidence of their current location. I would bet my life that these were the same strigoi that guardians were going on the mission to hunt.

Thankfully we were still in the back room so Lissa hadn't seen the corpses. I don't know how she would handle something like that.

I looked at Chris with a message written in my eyes, hoping he would get what I was trying to say. _Don't bring her out until I say.  
_  
Walking out, I put a hand protectively on my stomach. When I saw him, he barely had any time to register me but caught me in his arms when I laughed myself at him. Not caring who else was in the room, I gave him a long, hard kiss that I hoped conveyed how glad I was that he was here. That he was safe. And how much love I had for him.

I heard a gasp and I pulled away, resting my head on Dimitri's chest. I locked my arms tightly around his neck, holding on for dear life. His arms wound around my waist and held me too. Lingering a little longer in the moment I decided I could have a few seconds to relish with my love before I had to face the music.

Before turning around, I gave Dimitri a quick kiss to which he lengthened a bit before pulling around. Unconsciously his hands were on my stomach when I turned around. The twins moved with happiness and I smiled broadly at them reacting to their father.

Then I opened my eyes to be met with a fuming face covered in fiery red hair. Someone I knew all too well.

"Rosemarie."

* * *

**A/N- So there's chapter 11 my faithful readers! **

**4941 words WITHOUT an author's note for you! I think that deserves a review!? Maybe? At least 15? It's a high number but I hope you'll understand why by the end of this AN.**

**Anyways here is where we get down to business. I don't when I'll get the chance to write chapter 12...I'll be taking a break on ALL my stories because I'm bogged down with school since it is only two months until it ends. I have so many projects and I have to study for exams… :/ it makes me sad because I'd much rather write for all y'all. **

**I can't promise you that I'll post another chapter soon because I don't believe in making promises you can't keep. Sorry. BUT maybe I might have time to write and post two chapters before the END OF JUNE then I'll be sure to finish this story in a jiffy because I'll be off for the summer break. **

**Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all VA content used and I own nothing but the plot. **

**Besides we still have a lot to get through! **Ok so the answer to last chapter's question is that Sydney obsessed over a 1972 Citroen!

This chapter is; _What is the name of the river Rose pushed strigoi Dimitri in?_

**One more question for you guys, totally unrelated but if you know any good books I could really take suggestions because I'm running out of books to read! I'm a bookworm **

**So one last review before I say goodbye for a while? Thank you all for being fabulous! **

**SarahBelikova99**


	12. Chapter 12

_Previously;_

_Before turning around I gave Dimitri a quick kiss to which he lengthened a bit before pulling around. Unconsciously his hands were on my stomach when I turned around. The twins moved with happiness and I smiled broadly at them reacting to their father. _

_Then I opened my eyes to be met with a fuming face covered in fiery red hair. Someone I knew all too well. _

"_Rosemarie."_

**RPOV**

To say I was shocked would be an understatement. I shouldn't have thought that because she's one of the acclaimed guardians in this world and of course she would be called as backup.

Our relationship was on the mend from winter break at the ski lodge but it was still on the rocks. And this might have just made the boat tip even further.

Her face was tight and her lips were straight almost not visible. Her arms were crossed and her foot was tapping lightly but loudly. Her fiery red hair had been let loosed from its tight braid and her eyes were narrowed but not at me. She was sending looks to Dimitri and if they could kill, he would surely be dead.

Sensing her stare Dimitri started to unwind his arms from my waist but I grabbed them and wrapped them tighter around me if that was even possible. I leaned back into his chest even further and sighed contentedly. I looked up to Dimitri and saw the ever small smile he only kept for me. Other than that no one would even guess that his guard was fake and he was a tiny bit nervous of what was going to go down. I patted his hand reassuringly.

"Mother." I addressed the woman who gave birth to me. It was the only way I could think of her.

"What the he-" she had to stop because she started to sputter out what sounded like curses in her thick Scottish accent that only came out when she was really mad. Her face turned red and her fists were now clenched beside her. She pointed at Dimitri who I believe did pale a bit but not noticeable to anyone but me.

"Belikov! Outside now!" She barked out to him, as if he was some bad puppy. Janine marched up to him but halted at the door to yell at him again. This time it was in Russian.

This time his face certainly paled to a noticeable shade and guessing by the way Lissa gasped and even Sparky looked shocked, I'm taking my best guess that it was bad. I looked over to Alberta for any kind of indication but her face gave nothing away. I could barely breath what was going to happen?

Dimitri took my momentary lapse to release his arms from my waist and sidestep away from me. Desperately I grabbed onto his arm, "No I don't want you to go." I stomped my foot.

"Roza-"

"No! I said no! I won't let her hurt you!" My mother was not going to ruin this. She had no right to come in and demand things from either Dimitri or I.

"Oh Roza," he encased me in a hug and I sobbed in his chest. I just blamed it on the hormones. "It's ok. I love you."

I mumbled out an I love you back into his chest and let him go involuntarily.

"Wait!" I yelled. He turned around at the foot of the door and I ran into his arms one more time to press a searing kiss to his lips. "Ok you can go now. Be careful!"

I walked over to Lissa and Christian, "What did she say?" I asked both of them. They just shook their heads and Lissa gave me an apologetic smile.

"Sorry Rose, you should ask Dimitri. It's between you two."

I snorted. "Yeah right, if it was between just us mother dearest wouldn't have yelled it out across the room."

**DPOV **

I quickly followed Janine outside dreading what was coming next but at least I was prepared to face her, Alberta did. I had never been a man who was fearful, but the small woman was a spit fire. Even more so than Rose.

I had hoped that she would find out on our terms. Meaning having Rose and I tell her calmly instead of seeing our relationship out in the open firsthand. She was going to jump to conclusions, and I was more than certain I would lose my head. It just seemed like anything that could go wrong would.

Janine was standing with her back to me no doubt fuming. I would be the same if I had just seen my teenage daughter getting it on with her mentor who was seven years her senior. It was bad enough that she thought Rose was a rebel, now I was going to be thought of as a horrible instructor. She just did not understand.

"What the hell is wrong with you Belikov?!" Janine yelled turning around to face me, her face was red and her voice high pitched.

"It's not that it looks like." I tried to pacify her. I spoke to her in my native tongue as she yelled at me. I knew Roza would be listening at every window of opportunity.

"Really Belikov?" She raised her fists up and readied her fighting stance. On impulse I mimicked her position. "It looks like a man seven years my daughter's elder is taking advantage of her!"

Her fist swung and I quickly put my own arm up to block her attack. "It's not like that! I love Rose with everything in me and who am I!" I tried to reason with her, I had to get her to see that I would never harm or do anything Rose would not want..

I put my arms down backing out. I didn't want to fight Janine. I wanted her blessing. I held my hands up in defeat but apparently she didn't see it that way because her fist came flying at my face. I wasn't going to lie, it hurt like hell. I was pretty sure I was going to have a black eye tomorrow. But I could not fight back that would just make this entire situation worse.

Janine was about to deliberately land a roundhouse kick to my stomach but in mid stance Rose jumped in front of me blocking her mother.

"Stop!" She yelled at her mother. "Do not hurt him anymore than you have to."

"Rose...it's okay," I said resting a hand on her shoulder which she promptly shrugged off. I took that as a sign that she was now pissed and not to get in her way. Like mother like daughter, the saying about how the apple does not far from the tree crossed my mind, though I knew neither woman would agree to it.

"Rose get out of the way before you get hurt." Janine told her harshly, moving slightly so she could see me. Rose just held her ground and said no.

"I will not get out the way and you've already hurt me by hurting him. I will not tolerate it anymore." Rose clenched her fist and stood firm.

"Give me one damn good reason." Janine retorted.

"I love him damn it!" Rose yelled stopping her foot. "Why else would I be doing all of this!" I stepped forward ready to comfort Rose but as soon as Janine saw me take one step closer to her daughter she cut her eyes at me.

"Roza...calm down. Everything is going to be fine, isn't it Guardian Hathaway?" I shot her a look, if anything the woman would work with me to calm Rose. She knew how she could get.

"No it isn't!" Rose stomped her foot again and madly launched herself in my arms. It was unexpected but instinct kicked in and I caught her, holding on tightly while her face was buried in my neck ,her tears dampening my skin. "It wouldn't be, I don't want to lose you again." She cried.

"Ssh Roza, I promise that I will not go anywhere and I'll always be with you. I love you Milaya. Always." I told her, needing her to understand that not even her mother could keep me away. She nodded furiously into my neck.

Janine didn't give up her glare at me but softened a tiny bit upon hearing my declaration of love for Rose. She gave next a quick nod which I instantly knew was to let me know that she wanted to have a talk later. I nodded back and gave Rose a kiss to the top of her head. I knew I could not avoid Janine, and I did not want to. I would be a man and talk to her, hopefully without the violence.

Rose unhooked her legs from around my waist and lowered herself to the ground. I laughed not remembering her clinging to me like this. She turned to face her mother still in my arms.

"Rose, I would like to speak to you later if' that's alright." I was surprised to see Janine collecting herself, but then again she was a great guardian, and the best always were able to hide emotions.

"Of course it is mom." Janine smiled at Rose and left saying she'd see Rose soon.

* * *

Just lazing around with Roza is how I wanted to spend the rest of my days. Holding her in my arms, just feeling relaxed. I could imagine making her dinner, going on long walks. It was a dream, and a wonderful one at that. But unfortunately that could not happen because of what we do. Because like always someone else had to come first.

Alberta had given us the okay to spend the day together since it really was the first time to just reconnect since all the craziness has was well needed, but we had other things to tend to. There was always something else, sadly. The sadness around the campus was one of the main reasons I tried to understand why we could not.

Kirova had cancelled all classes for two weeks because of the attack. Some had been lost but not a lot thankfully. It was still more than there should have been. The attack should have never happened. But there was nothing we could do about it now. The ceremony for those who had fallen in battle was at the end of the week and the molnija ceremony was after the funeral.

We were in my room currently; I was sitting with my back against my headboard with Roza's body between my legs and her head on my chest. My arms were wrapped around her and her hands were behind her head. It was one of those moments where nothing else mattered. It was just us and we could ignore the harsh world just outside the bedroom door.

I felt content. No more than content. Even when Roza sat up and crossed her legs.

"Dimitri," she began. She had a sort of a wairy tone to her voice, like she was worried. I gave her a reassuring smile and waited for her to pick up where she left off. "I have something to tell you."

She raised her top high enough that it rested underneath her breasts. I raised an eyebrow in question and she blushed. Rose grabbed my hands and placed them on her stomach. I left them there and drummed my fingers along her smooth skin. Her petite hands draped over my larger ones and her lips upturned into the biggest smile that could only be described of utter joy. Her eyes sparkled and she looked down at her stomach then me again. And did this about two more times until I finally made the connection. My eyes started watering of their own accord and upon seeing my tears Rose started to leak herself.

"I'm pregnant." I just nodded and pulled her into my body, engulfing her in my arms.

It was like my body was on auto function, just like it had been when she had told me we were able to have a child. I pulled her away from me cupping her face in my hands taking a moment just to study her. Her own expression mirrored my own. Both of us had the largest smiles of mankind and tears streaming down our faces. Tears of joy. This was something I never thought I could have, and with her I had been able to have it all.

Without another second to waste, my lips were pressed to hers immediately asking for entrance to which she granted me. I lifted Rose until she was straddling my upper chest while I lay down. I slowly took her top off letting my fingertips brush the undersides and sides of her breasts. I smiled when she shivered underneath my touch and closed her eyes, the slight upturn of her lips indicating that she was enjoying my agonizingly slow movements. I continued this motion until I had stripped the offensive piece of clothing off and threw it onto the floor.

My fingertips ghosted over her stomach, swirling patterns around her belly button and smooth skin. She shuddered and I leant forwards placing my lips on her skin. Rose moaned and threw her head back. I began to trail my lips, making sure that they captured every inch of skin. My hands rested on her hips, rubbing in circular motions. I just could not get enough of her. When I got closer to her barely noticeable swell, I nipped around the edges and trailed my tongue over to bites to soothe the sting. Rose's hands grabbed my hair and she knotted her fingers through the strands, slightly tugging at the roots.

My lips started moving again, but a different kind of movement. My mouth was placed right above her belly button and I whispered to my children. Geez, that sounds so weird already I thought, but loving all the same.

"Hi _deti_, I'm your _otets_. I love you and your _mat'_ so much she can't even comprehend. I'll spend the rest of my life loving you as well and teaching you all sorts of things. I hope I'll be a good _otets_ because mine wasn't a very good one. But I'll make sure that you or your _mat'_ never ever have to experience that." I could not help but speak the words; I feared being a bad father because I had never known what it was like to have a good one.

I looked up at Roza to see slight empathy in her eyes. "Dimitri, it's not your fault and it never will be. you will be the best father to the children and I know that you'll never lay a hand on either me or your children."

I stared at her in awe. "Children?"

She nodded shyly and our earlier activities picked up, well up until the point of me whispering. I was elated. I was not only blessed with one little miracle but two. "I love you so so much." I mumbled against her lips.

"I know and so do I."

* * *

**RPOV**

After spending almost the whole day with Dimitri, I walked to guest housing where my mother was staying. I guess it was time for our talk. Whoppe! Cue the sarcasm. I was not looking forward to it, but I had to talk to her before she went overboard. Dimitri had to work a late shift and since Lissa was with Christian I decided it was finally time to go see and talk with my mom, maybe it would be best if we were alone.

She answered midknock and opened the door to reveal not her but a man dressed in a suit with a flashing red scarf and handkerchief. He had deep brown almost black hair and a goatee with features that looked familiar but could not place at the moment. He had two gold hoops in both ear and a knowing smirk written on his face. Judging by his complexion he was Moroi but had a little bit of a tan which was unheard of for vampires. Overall he looked ridiculous.

I narrowed my eyes at him and crossed my arms over my chest. "Who are you?"

"No one of your importance kiz," he said, the smirk still in place.

I tapped my foot impatiently when I heard my mother's voice call out from inside. "Ibrahim who is at the door?"

"I believe it is your lovely daughter," he said smiling at me. What was up with this guy was weird. I intended to figure who and what he was here for, especially why he was visiting my mother, no less in her room.

"Old man let me in." I said getting annoyed, who the hell did he think he was.

"Now now no need for name calling little girl," he said. I snorted but walked in when he moved away from the doorframe.

"Oh Rose," my mother said, she looked a bit flustered and I almost laughed when her cheeks grew red.

"Is this a bad time for you?" I asked quite seriously.

"No no Ibrahim was just leaving. Weren't you Abe?" She said giving him a pointed look.

"Yes apparently I was," he said stroking his goatee. "By the way Rose, your mother is a wonderful woman." He winked at my mother to which she blushed at and he walked out closing the door behind him. I raised my eyebrows at her in question but she directed the attention back to me. I decided to leave it alone. For now.

I took a seat making myself comfortable on the couch. My mother took the seat opposite me. There was a long awkward silence and I could not help but sigh deeply. That broken the spell.

"How long has this been going on for Rose?" Ah she was back. Straight to the point and not beating around the bush.

"Um, a couple weeks ago?" I said not sure of myself. I mean if you counted the stolen kisses, hugs and moments we'd shared before the cabin then I guess you could say it's been going on for quite a while.

"Is that a question of a statement?" She narrowed her eyes annoyance clear in them.

"I don't know," I admitted.

"Well why don't you start from the beginning?"

"Ok but you have to promise not to go and immediately do something rash to Dimitri whatsoever." I begged.

She was quiet for a few moments before she nodded her consent. I began with telling her about my minuscule crush I had on him when he had brought Lissa and I back to academy. Eventually it had developed more, he had slowly worked his way into my heart. Then came the part about the lipgloss and the Missoula trip. She still hadn't tried anything so I decided to take the lust charm slowly and gauge her reaction.

"You know about the kidnapping with Lissa by Victor?" She nodded. "Well to effectively get rid of me and Dimitri, the biggest threats, Victor had charmed my necklace to make us attack each other."

"Yes I know, you slowed Guardian Belikov down by fighting him." She said it like it was common knowledge, which I suppose it was, it had all been written down somewhere in a file. A file she no doubt had access to.

I shook my head ever so slowly. "Mom, it wasn't that kind of attack. Victor had already guessed that we were both attracted to each other and used that against us."

"What are you saying Rose?" Her teeth were gritted together and I prepared myself.

"I'm saying that it was a lust charm…" before I could finish what I wanted to say I saw her storm up and rip open the door. "Mom you promised! Get back here!"

"But but how can I when-" I had never seen my mother so lost.

"It's okay mom." My mother turned back to look at me. "Please mom, just listen." I pleaded with her.

I needed her to listen to understand. I willed her with my eyes and her shoulders slumped some. She sighed and reluctantly walked back to her place she was occupying. She motioned with her hand to continue and I did. Again I took a deep breath, wondering how this was all going to end.

"Nothing happened. Well in that way," I peeked out from one eye to gauge her reaction. For now she was ok hearing that we hadn't gone all the way.

I proceeded to tell her about the ski lodge and Tasha. I told her how I felt about losing him, how I had given him the OK to leave. I watched as my mom's face expressed sympathy as she heard about Dimitri and I's talk about him taking Tasha's offer. It was as if she was finally able to see how serious this had all been for us.

Finally after what seemed like forever I reached the part where the cabin took place. Janine's face morphed into rage as I told her about Victor and the trial. Everyone hated that man.

"Now after Lissa experienced her dark magic and I took the brunt of it Dimitri took me over to one of the old guardian posts. He calmed me down and...and...it happened. Mom it was the best and us showing each other that we finally loved each other, it couldn't get any better. I love this man with all my heart."

"Rose, I am happy for you even though this is not the best of situations we deal. I am glad this happened to you because god knows what you've been through and back." My mother smiled and I froze in shock. Ok so that reaction was completely off from what I expected but I would take it any day, especially since she wanted to kill him after I had mentioned the lust charm.

"Wait so...so you're okay with this?" Janine nodded. "And you're not going to turn Dimitri in?" Another nod but this time to confirm she was not going to report him or our relationship.

I sighed in relief. Pushing my luck I asked her, "Are you going to hurt him?"

My mother smirked, "Can't promise that Rose."

I laughed realizing my mother was back to herself. And deciding she was still on the sympathy train I chose now to reveal my little secrets.

"Mom," I said nervously. I didn't know how she would react to this but I had a pretty good idea. Although I thought I had a pretty good idea of how she would've reacted to the events of Dimitri's and I's relationship but that was a complete 180.

"Yes Rose?" She looked at me in question.

Breathing out deeply again, I then delivered the news. "You're going to be a grandma." I watched as her face fell slack and then...

**A/N- So I'm back sooner than you guys expected right? ;) **

**Translations:**

_Deti _means children

_Otets _ mean father

_Met' _means mother

**School is only 13 more days then I have exams!**

**So studying all weekend for me! And I've got to go to my dragonboating regatta! So wish me luck on that!**

**The answer to last chapter's question was **Rose pushed Dimitri into the _Ob _River! **This chapter's question is, in BP, what is the name of the human who wanted to turn Strigoi willingly and worked at the estate Dimitri was living in when he was a strigoi as a servant to Nathan?**

**So how about 15 reviews before next chapter? It's a lot but you guys were fantastic with reviews last chapter. Tell me your thoughts, feelings, reactions, EVERYTHING!**

**Bye for now!**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Alright I'm back and I'm still alive. I'll explain everything in the PM at the bottom. Please read it; there's important information there. Happy reading and hope you enjoy.**_

_Previously; _

_"Rose, I am happy for you even though this is not the best of situations we deal. I am glad this happened to you because god knows what you've been through and back." My mother smiled and I froze in shock. Ok so that reaction was completely off from what I expected but I would take it any day, especially since she wanted to kill him after I had mentioned the lust charm._

"Wait so...so you're okay with this?" Janine nodded. "And you're not going to turn Dimitri in?" Another nod but this time to confirm she was not going to report him or our relationship.

I sighed in relief. Pushing my luck I asked her, "Are you going to hurt him?"

My mother smirked, "Can't promise that Rose."

I laughed realizing my mother was back to herself. And deciding she was still on the sympathy train I chose now to reveal my little secrets.

"Mom," I said nervously. I didn't know how she would react to this but I had a pretty good idea. Although I thought I had a pretty good idea of how she would've reacted to the events of Dimitri's and I's relationship but that was a complete 180.

"Yes Rose?" She looked at me in question.

Breathing out deeply again, I then delivered the news. "You're going to be a grandma." I watched as her face fell slack and then...

"Mom…" I broached warily, it was slightly like approaching a rabid animal.

"Rosemarie, what do you mean by 'you're going to be a grandma'?" Her eyes were wide almost as if she could not understand what I was saying. When I didn't answer she took my silence in stride. She rubbed her face and let out a deep sigh.

"Oh my god." She sat down on her bed and put her face in her hands. "Rose." She stared at me with a disappointed expression on her face. I felt my own face fall slack.

"Do you think I wanted this to happen?" I asked. "It's physically impossible for this to happen."

"So it's not his?"

I shook with oncoming rage. "Who do you think I am? Some kind of whore?" I grabbed onto the couch and pulled myself up. "How could you…how could you think that? Don't you know me at all?" My voice was barely a whisper at the last statement.

I felt tears leaking out of my eyes and a pair of arms wrapped around me. I sobbed into the noticeable gap that came from the difference between my mom's height and mine. These hormones were taking over and I was sure this would be the death of me.

But a little part of me did wonder how much she really did know me, I knew now that it wasn't her fault; I didn't understand when I was younger that she wasn't just going to drop everything, being a guardian, and raise me.

But did she really think that I would cheat on Dimitri? The thought of it brought another wave of tears falling from my eyes.

"It's okay Rose. I'm sorry I misjudged you." Her voice was soft, whispered into my hair.

"It's his mom, they're Dimitri's. I would never cheat on him. " I muffled.

"It's okay. I believe you and you may not expect it but I am happy for you. Although these are not quite the circumstances under which I hoped this would happen, I understand."

"You do?" I asked raising my head, sniffling. My mom handed me a tissue and I hastily wiped my face.

Janine nodded. "Rose I'll be here for you. I can tell that he makes you extremely happy and I'm happy when you're happy." She smiled. "And who am I to take away the happiness of the most important person in my life. Does he know?"

I nodded in affirmation. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I would never give it up for anything. It's the one thing I'm able to give him, the one thing he's always wanted. And I never knew how much I wanted it myself until it actually happened and they're actually in here."

"I know the feeling Rose," she said smiling at me with a glow in her eyes.

"I love you mommy." I whispered going back to the endearment that I remembered using when I was a little child.

"I love you too baby." We embraced once more and then she pulled back.

"Now onto something as equally as important. You said 'they're'?" She said with her eyebrows raised.

I nodded excitedly. "Twins." I said proudly rubbing my hand in soothing circles over my stomach.

"Do you know what they are yet? No you wouldn't, it's too early. You're not even showing." I nodded slyly.

"I am. And apparently this pregnancy progresses quicker than others. Dr. O said her best guess was due to the combined dhampir dhampir genetics. Dhampirs are usually bigger than moroi and that's why their pregnancies are quicker than those of moroi but these babies have two dhampir parents."

"Makes sense."

"So do you know…?" She let her previous question hang.

"One of each."

"Have you picked out names?" my mother asked.

"Dimitri and I haven't talked about it yet but I want something Russian. Something that links them to their father." I had actually started looking but none of them felt right, yet.

Turning serious, I faced my mom. "I know it's uncommon for us to know but can you tell me about my father?" I asked hopefully.

Janine sighed. "You'll meet him soon."

I wasn't nearly satisfied with her answer but not pushing my luck, I decided not to cause my mother more emotional pain. It pained her to talk about him because I'm guessing they had more than a fling, maybe it was love? I'm sure if Dimitri and I were in the same position, I would be talking about him like that.

We were in that position when Dimitri had left. I never wanted to think about that again but as I reflected on it, I desperately wanted to know what caused him to leave so abruptly. I respected him enough to let him tell me on his own terms but I hadn't even gotten an inkling as to what it was. I got up, determined to find out. I thanked my mother for understanding once more, told her I loved her and promised we would talk soon.

As I walked to Dimitri's room I wondered if he would be done his shift. He left before I woke up from my nap and I found the note that paper that promised to be back before I knew it.

Today was also an appointment with Dr. Olendzki, to check how far along I was. Dimitri would be accompanying me.

My hand remained permanently on my stomach sometimes wandering over and under the bump that had formed. It wasn't visible yet when I had normal clothing on but every night I looked in the mirror and I almost cried at the sight of something so precious. That something was mine.

When I was reading up on pregnancies, it said my ankles and lower back shouldn't start hurting until I was later on in my pregnancy and I actually had a visible load that I was carrying. But right now they were hurting so much, I just wanted to sit down or maybe have a nice soak in the tub. Unfortunately student dorms had no tub but from the countless nights I've spent with my lover, I am the wiser in knowing he has a tub.

I quickly unlocked the door with the key Dimitri had copied for me. I took off my shoes and left them by the door. I stripped and left a trail of clothes along the floor as I walked to the bed, only left in my underwear and bra. I lay face down and breathed in the freshly washed pillowcases. Dimitri had sacrificed his aftershave for me because of the nausea it brought upon me. It was such a pity too because I loved it.

But Dimitri's natural scent was even more intoxicating and I couldn't help but not breathe deeply, inhaling it. It was musky and woodsy. It smelled of man and something that was uniquely him.

It was turning me on. Not gonna lie. And these hormones only amplified the feeling.

I nuzzled my face deep into the pillow and felt sleep take over. It wasn't long until I was in between sleep and reality. I distinctively remember hearing the door open and breath hitching. I smiled inwardly and opened my dazed eyes.

The fridge door opened and I heard water being poured into a glass then the loud gulp followed. He walked over to me and sat down next to my body. I immediately threw my arms around his waist, enveloping him in a hug.

"I love you." I whispered the words into his neck, planting kisses as I went.

"I love you." He pulled me away from his shoulder and pulled me into another kiss. This one softer, telling me just how he felt.

I smiled and basked in his heat. Sighing against his neck I pulled him closer to me, not ready to let go. His hands rested on my bump rubbing soothing circles. I felt a thump against my stomach and it hurt a bit. I'm pretty sure as to what it was but I wanted to make sure.

"Dimitri, rub that spot you did just now," I said impatiently. He looked at me funny but complied. I felt it again but this time two kicks simultaneously. I felt tears leak out. "Oh my god, they just kicked! They just kicked…"

I hugged him tightly to me and cried into his neck and felt his tears leak out. I felt one firm hand soundly on my stomach and the other continuing the circular motion. Kicks shot out in every direction but mostly right above the firmly planted hand.

"Roza they kicked," he said in awe.

"I know."

He laughed out of joy and stood joy pulling me with him. I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck from the sudden movement and it was a good thing I had something to hold onto because he started spinning me and him in happy circles. When he planted me back on my feet, he dropped to his knees and put his face directly in front of my bump.

I threaded my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer when he turned slightly and rested his ear against my skin, no doubt listening to the thumps of the heartbeats. I stroked the side of Dimitri's face, feeling the day old stubble that was growing, memorizing the feeling of the prickliness between my fingers.

Dimitri started whispering to them in Russian, and they loved that because there were more kicks and also they were harder. The mass majority of it, I had no idea what I meant but I caught the words for 'mother', 'father', 'babies' and so on. Dimitri placed a kiss right above my belly button, then under it and on it. I giggled at this and he grinned.

Nothing could describe how we felt. Sheer happiness and pure joy were the only things I could think off at the moment and it was a big understatement.

A little while later, we had eventually dressed. As soon as curfew struck we waited three hours until walking across the courtyard to get to the clinic. The sliding doors opened and we slipped in quietly with me leading the way to the room I was in a couple weeks ago when I found out about the pregnancy.

"Rose," Dr. Olendzki said from behind the desk with a smile. "Guardian Belikov." Dimitri gave her a short nod in response.

"Well Dr. O, let's get this show on the road," I said hopping up onto the bed.

She laughed at my enthusiasm. Dimitri took his place next to me and I placed my smaller hand in his, entwining or fingers together. He smiled one of those rare, big smiles at me and I couldn't help my own from popping up on my face. He tucked a stray strand of hair that had fallen from my messy bun behind my ear.

"Well Rose, do you mind lifting your shirt up for me?" I did as she said. "Now this is going to feel a bit cold."

Even though she warned me, I still let out a hiss from the cold. With her ultrasound probe, she moved it around my stomach, spreading the goop over more surface area. She put her stethoscope on and smiled.

"I can hear two strong heartbeats." Dimitri grasped my hand tighter and rubbed his thumb over my knuckles.

"Now if you turn your attention to the screen, you can see your kids." We turned to see two potato like bodies, each with visible hands and feet and I distinguishable body. I realized Dimitri was gripping my hand tighter.

"Those are our children," he said in awe.

"Well Rose, you're roughly 12 weeks along-" Dr. O started.

"Wait but that would mean three months?" I asked. She nodded. "But that can't be because they were only possibly conceived about a month and a half ago…"

"Rose, we don't know the explanation. These babies will grow faster due to who their parents are. It looks like this pregnancy will cut down to half the time because their rate of growth is double that of the average fetus."

"Oh," I said.

"You'll still have the usual morning sickness, cravings, mood swings, aches and pains but they'll come faster and be shorter." She said with a wink. I groaned.

"When will this morning sickness be done? I'm really getting annoyed with it and it's not just in the mornings."

"I can't really say. It differs with every woman really. It could last a couple weeks or even for the full duration of your pregnancy." I groaned again.

"And when will I start being visible? I mean I have a bump now but that's easily concealed with Dimitri's or my baggy clothes. But when I start classes again, the uniform is tight."

"Ah Rose, most women with a single load start to show easily at the end of the first trimester, after 12 weeks. You have doubles in there so it will progress at a much faster rate, especially because of the usual circumstance. Your best bet at this point is to hope your stomach muscles are tight enough to hold for a little while. Women with stronger tummy muscles show later due to the lack of room for stretching."

"Damn." I let out a few more choice expletives and Dr. O gave me a sympathetic look.

"When's her due date?" I heard Dimitri speak up.

"Right now, it looks to be the middle of October. I can't tell you a specific date when because of their rapid growth but it'll be around the second week of that month."

"Yay! I won't have Halloween twins!" Man when she said October, I was just praying for it not to be on the 31st. Not that I have bad memories of Halloween, but I wouldn't want to have Halloween babies.

Dr. Olendzki handed me some paper towels to clean my stomach after laughing at my statement. I quickly cleaned myself up and Dimitri lifted me off the bed and onto the ground because I was too lazy to do it myself.

As we were walking back to, somewhere I guess, I asked Dimitri if we could start our training back tomorrow morning. He was reluctant at first but after a lot of begging, persuading and using my womanly charm he gave in. It was that or I wouldn't _put out. _And you know men. Even the best ones like my Dimitri couldn't resist. Man, that sounded fantastic. My Dimitri. _My _Dimitri.

"Can I stay with you tonight? Please Comrade?"

He gave me a wary look. "If it makes a better argument, if the dorm matron catches me sneaking in with my mentor what rumors will start?" I gave him my pouty lip. "But isn't it enough that the woman you love and the mother of your children want to stay with you? I want to cuddle you?"

"Roza, Roza, Roza." He said letting out an exasperated sigh and I knew then the battle had been won by yours truly. "I'm not even going to try arguing with you because you will always find a loophole to get your way."

That night as I fell asleep in the strong arms of the man I love, head on his chest and listening the strong thump of his heart, I realized he was all I would ever need. And with that last thought consuming me, I let myself go into the void of dreams.

**A/N- Alright so this is the important note. I'll put it into point form because what I want to say is too long for paragraph form and I'll bore you to death. Here we go...**

**1\. Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns any VA content used and I own the plot. No copyright infringement intended. **

**2\. The answer to last chapter's question was,** Inna, **was the name of the human who willingly served Nathan in BP. **

**3\. This chapter's question is not VA related but specific for this story. Review and please please please give me names for a baby girl and boy. UM I'm kinda stuck on which ones to choose because I love them all so I have enlisted your help. Please tell me what you think!**

**5\. It's now summer break and I have free time to write more and more so that means regular updates. Yay for that!**

**6\. IMPORTANT I am changing my pen name so all of you know know. I will keep reposting this note on this and every one of my other stories until it has been changed. By the way, you should go check them out.**

**7\. (Last note, you're probably getting tired of me, I would too :) I have a proposition for y'all. For this chapter and every other one, if I get at least 20 reviews I will post immediately. I already have the next few chapters written. **

**8\. (I lied. Sorry but this is important too!) No matter how long it takes for me to update between stories, I will never stop one. I will ALWAYS finish what I start. It might just take a little while because 3 stories at once is pretty difficult. **

**Ok, until next time, REVIEW!**

**SarahBelikova**


	14. Chapter 14

_**Before we start, I need to say that this chapter was not beta-ed, so any mistakes made are my own. Happy reading and hope you enjoy! **_

_Previously; _

"_Can I stay with you tonight? Please Comrade?"_

_He gave me a wary look. "If it makes a better argument, if the dorm matron catches me sneaking in with my mentor what rumors will start?" I gave him my pouty lip. "But isn't it enough that the woman you love and the mother of your children want to stay with you? I want to cuddle you?"_

"_Roza, Roza, Roza." He said letting out an exasperated sigh and I knew then the battle had been won by yours truly. "I'm not even going to try arguing with you because you will always find a loophole to get your way."_

_That night as I fell asleep in the strong arms of the man I love, head on his chest and listening the strong thump of his heart, I realized he was all I would ever need. And with that last thought consuming me, I let myself go into the void of dreams. _

_Damn. _I still hadn't asked Dimitri what I wanted to yesterday. I guess it just slipped my mind with our, um, _activities, _and the appointment. And the babies kicking.

I shifted the strap of the exercise bag, moving more of the weight onto my back and off my shoulder. That worked for a while until my back started paining me, again. The news of the babies growing healthily and fully made me leap in bounds and joy but the news of them growing faster and therefore causing me more pain and aches sooner did not make me jump for joy. And the worst thing was, they started this morning when Dimitri woke me up.

He had placed tiny kisses along my face and collarbone, increasing the pressure at random spots. I turned slightly so that his next kiss would land on my lips but winced when a sharp shooting pain shot through my lower back. He of course noticed right away and immediately asked what was wrong. And I of course brushed it off as me sleeping the wrong way causing a tension that hurt when I moved the wrong way. Like the kind you often get in your neck but this one was in my back.

It took a bit of convincing but Dimitri finally left the topic alone. He busied himself in the small kitchenette, and I smelt the strong aroma of coffee. Oh coffee how I had missed you. Back when we were in Portland, Lissa and I would stop at Starbucks every morning before school, me getting a simple black coffee and her getting a mocha latte. Of course.

I swung my legs out of bed and stood up, arching backwards to try and stretch it out. I bent down to touch my toes stretching out my hamstrings when I felt the nausea that I had felt every morning prior to this.

I barely had enough time to life the toilet seat up and drop to my knees before last night's meal made a reappearance. Hands were in my hair pulling it back; I felt it go back into a ponytail.

"I'm okay." I said. Then the nausea returned, "Wait, no I'm not."

And then I blew chunks. I grabbed a piece of toilet paper and wiped my mouth, threw it into the bowl and then flushed, pulling the seat down and sitting on the closed lid. I leant back against the tank and the cool glass felt really good against my hot and flushed skin.

"Thanks," I murmured to Dimitri.

"Anytime Roza."

"I want to train today." I said adamantly even though my stomach still wavered. But only a tiny bit.

"I don't think that's such a good idea Rose," Dimitri let out a sigh. I could tell that he wanted to agree with me but a bigger part of him wanted to take care and not let any harm come to me.

"Comrade, please? I've been cooped up and I'm going out of my mind. I need to be doing something, _anything_. I'm just so restless."

"Okay Roza, but we take it easy today."

Now I was walking to the gym where I would meet Dimitri. I had to go to my room and pick up the necessary things I would need for the day. Also I packed a little bag I would give Dimitri to keep in his room for whenever I slept over.

I winced again as the same pain from this morning ran through my back. I ignored it and kept on making my way to the gym. Walking in, I dropped my bag and gave Dimitri a quick kiss, then plopped down to the mats to do my warm up stretches.

"We're not sparring today Rose. Or doing any intensive work."

"Aw Comrade, you're gonna make me do the baby work? I whined. He rolled his eyes at me.

"Maybe if you're good I'll run with you." I perked up at that. In three quick _sultry _strides, I stood in front of him, dragging my hands up his chest until they were draped behind his neck. I pressed closer to him; especially my bump and his hands immediately covered it like instinct. "I'll be very _very _ good. Just watch." I turned on _that_ voice and gave him my man eater smile.

It didn't faze him at all. Instead he shook his head playfully and smacked my bottom telling me to "go start working on weights."

I pouted all the way over to the dumbbells and picked up a 50 pound one in each hand starting on my bicep curls. After 30 reps on each hand, I switched to flys, which worked my triceps and upper back muscles. Again I did 30 reps. Which was a bad idea because as soon as I finished my twentieth rep, the ache intensified and I felt like my back was going to give out at any moment. I tried to not let it bother me as I pushed to finish what I had started. Hey, I'm Rose Hathaway. A little pain is nothing.

I moved casually in a way that wouldn't alert Dimitri that I was hurting and walked over to him. "Hey Comrade," I called over to his form lying on the mat. He was reading one of those god awful westerns. "I'm going to start running," I said when he looked up. He nodded and got up to join me- I guess I was being good. Ha! Or his book was just super boring- after sliding his bookmark into his current page.

When we got outside I took a moment just to soak up the late afternoon rays. It felt so good on my skin. I missed it and this was one of the only times I got to enjoy it.

I closed my eyes and sighed letting my head droop back. My hands covered my neck in a motion as if to trap the sunshine on my skin forever. Arms wrapped around my stomach, I leaned against the body I knew do well. These were the few times we were allowed to be 'open' with our relationship. His hands found my stomach, thumbs rubbing small circles. It seemed as if the opportunity arose, Dimitri always took it to place his hands on my bump.

Turning around I gave him a kiss on his collarbone and walked out of his arms and to the track where I began my warm up laps and he soon joined me.

"How are you feeling this morning Roza?"

"I'm fine."

"Rose I know you're not."

"Well if you knew I was not _well_," I spat, "then why did you ask me how I was?" I snapped.

Where did that come from? Dimitri looked as if he'd just had the wind knocked out of him.

"Sorry," I mumbled. He still didn't say anything so I felt the need to explain myself. "I've just been feeling off since this morning and I just don't know. I think it has something to do with the pregnancy and it's annoying me. Like every little thing I have a problem with annoys me to a whole different level."

"You could've just told me Roza. And it seems to me that you're experiencing your mood swings now. This was around the time my sisters had theirs too. And what Mama has told me. Yeva said it's because the women experience it faster because of their Belikov blood."

"But I don't have any Belikov blood." I said.

"Ah but you do," he said pointing to my stomach. "Those babies are half me too you know." he teased and I swatted his arm.

Turning serious again he said, "But you can tell me whatever is wrong. I'll always help you through it. I love you, you know that?"

"I do and I love you too." I nodded in agreement and we ran in silence. But a comforting silence. We finished a little earlier than usual, meaning my times have improved so that meant I was able to change and catch Lissa and the gang in the cafeteria before classes started. Which I just realized I would be seeing _everyone _since my escape two weeks ago. I decided that I'll deal with it in the moment.

My uniform barely covered my bump but with some strategic ruffling and un-tucking, I was able to conceal it. I grabbed my backpack and swung it over one shoulder, heading out the door.

I grabbed some doughnuts, two chocolate chip muffins, a couple pancakes and some eggs. Just for Lissa, I put a banana and container of raspberries on my tray. I quickly scanned the mass of people and when I spotted fiery red curls, I walked over to the table.

I took a seat across from Lissa, who graced me with a smile and sat in between Mason and Eddie who both had shocked expressions on their faces. I smirked, and used the same line I had when I'd first seen them after two years. "If you're gonna think about me naked, do it on your own time."

Eddie, like the gentleman he was, blushed and smiled sheepishly but Mason on the other hand just copied my smirk.

"So Rosie, gonna tell us where you been?"

I had thought about it long and hard; it wouldn't be right to keep something this important from the people that I had come to regard as my family.

"Actually Mase, I am. Come with me before class and I'll explain everything." I said. He looked pretty surprised; can't blame them for that. He was the only one in our group who didn't know yet.

_Rose?_

I looked up at Lissa acknowledging that I had gotten her message through the bond.

_Shouldn't you be eating more…healthy? _

She took a long time choosing her words; she didn't want to say anything to insult me. "Relax Liss; I got two pieces of fruit." I waved my banana in front her face and she gave me a look. The one with her eyebrows raised. But thankfully she dropped it for now when I gave her a look of my own pleading with her that now wasn't the right time.

"Hey Rose?" I looked over to Christian in mid bite. "Think you got enough food there?" He finished with a knowing smile. Eddie snorted, getting what Christian was taking about.

I rolled my eyes and flipped him of while cracking open my coke. I saw Lissa reprimand him by slapping his arm.

"C'mon Mase, I'm done. Let's go. I'll see you guys in class."

"What's up Rose?" He asked as I locked my room door.

I took a seat on the bed, the bed I hadn't slept in for a while. The familiar sheets felt well, like I'd never left in the first place. The sheets were wrinkled and blankets rumpled.

I caressed my stomach absentmindedly and looked at Mason. This was going to be harder than I expected it to be. Very much like my mom, I was unsure of what his reaction would be. I doubt it would've been as accepting and happy as Lissa.

"Um Mase, I don't know how to say this so I'm just going to come out say it."

He stood by the door in a stance very much like a guardian; standing straight with arms crossed, feet shoulder with apart and knees slightly bent as if ready for an attack.

"Go ahead Rosie." I glared at him for calling me that.

"I'm pregnant."

A blank stare followed my words and a confused glare and finally I heard several choice expletives muttered under his breath then silence.

"Which moroi is it?" He demanded.

"It's not a moroi." I said quietly.

"Oh so you got pregnant by the magical stork? Rose you don't have to defend him!"

I flinched at his tone. I could feel my own anger rising. "I didn't get pregnant by a fucking moroi!"

He pinched the bridge of his nose. I knew Mase was really protective of me; he was like the big brother I never had. His funny side had sunken in and this Mason coming out I had never seen before. Maybe part of it was jealously; I knew Mason harboured feeling towards me but I don't think that was the reason why. I needed more of his understanding side to come out because I wasn't sure this would end well if it didn't.

"Rose we've all known since kindergarten that dhampirs can't reproduce with other dhampirs so don't say it is. Unless there's some freaky shit you tried that allows you to get pregnant by yourself because that's not possible either."

I scrunched my nose up in disgust. "Ew Mase who do you think I am? Yeah I'm seventeen, dhampir in training and guardian to Lissa, oh and I also want to add mother to the list!"

"Rose it's not possible." I knew he was back to the dhampir-dhampir thing.

"Mase you just have to believe me."

"Why should I? Give me one reason to believe that this," He pointed to my stomach, "is possible?"

"Dr. O said as long as one parent has a spirit gene it is. And you know, I died and Lissa brought me back using _spirit. _And the father has a gene on his side so that combined with the species of the parents will make the fetus grow twice as fast as a normal pregnancy."

He sighed and shook his head, still in disbelief that this was happening. It was kind of a shock; having everything you've been taught and pounded into you repeatedly being turned upside down. But he was coming around slowly but surely and turning back into that understanding boy I knew and loved.

I smiled and waved my hand, motioning for him to come take a seat beside me. Mason walked over and plopped himself on the bed, arms spread wide. I lied down beside him, my feet dangling over the edge and his knees bent. I huffed inwardly, cursing my shortness.

"So there's really a human being in your stomach?"

I laughed. "Yes there is. Actually two." I propped myself up on my forearms and elbows, looking down at him.

"Oh man, let's just hope they don't have your personality and they inherit whatever their father has." He snorted when I muttered a hey! at him, not at all offended. Though I did too, two more spitfire personalities I wouldn't be able to handle. That's why I had Dimitri. Speaking of him…

"Rose who's the father?" Mason said, becoming more serious now.

I hesitated. "Rose?"

"Mase please don't get mad."

"Is it a guy I hate? Or has been mean to you? Or a guy who's going to leave you because if that's what he says to you then I say my fist goes in his face."

I chuckled. "No Mase, he's nothing like that. I love him, a lot. He's not going to leave me; this is something he's wanted for a while." He looked at me in confusion and I replayed my words back mentally, realizing it did sound weird. What seventeen year old guy has wanted children for a long time? That's what he thought. He couldn't be more wrong. "And no offence, but I think he would wipe the floor with you in a fight."

He scoffed, playing mock hurt. Maybe even thinking it. I felt a bit bad because who wants their best friend to tell them that another guy of the same age as them, is better? Feeling a bit guilty I said, "But seriously don't worry Mase, you're the second best damn novice at the school."

"Who's the first?"

I acted offended, dramatically throwing my hand over my heart. "Me of course."

"Alright then. But Rose you know you can always talk to me." There he was again, nudging at the topic of the father again. I guess it was time; I've held it off too long now.

"It's Dimitri." I said quietly.

Mason only chuckled deeply and it was filled with humor. "No Rose, who is it really?"

Much with like telling him about my pregnancy, I kept quiet until he finally got it. "Are you to God serious?" I nodded.

"Oh man Rose, you're known for doing reckless things but I never would've thought it would go to those lengths."

I turned on Mason and pinned him to the bed, in a totally unromantic way, and grabbed his collar. "Now you listen here Ashford, loving Dimitri was and _is _not a reckless thing to do. You better get that through your head or someone will find your dead body buried behind a bush."

Mason had a look of utter fear written on his face and his arms were up beside his head. I even surprised myself with the malice in my voice. I jumped back quickly still freaked out at what I had done. Mason sat up, cautiously. I couldn't blame him, I would do it too if it were me that had been jumped by me.

I shook my head trying to clear out what I had just done. "Um sorry, I can't help these hormones and Dimitri said my mood swings are starting."

He set his jaw upon hearing Dimitri's name. "You better get your deal over with him because I'm not going to just stop loving him or interacting with him because you're unhappy. A wise person once told me that the world doesn't revolve around me," I stared pointedly at him, throwing his words back at him from earlier in the year. He scowled at what I was getting at. "And now I'm saying the world doesn't revolve around _you."_

"But-" He started.

"No buts, you are one of my best friends and I don't want to lose you because if I have to choose between you or Dimitri, it sure as hell wouldn't be you. So get over it, and get over him. He got me pregnant. I'm having his children. I love him. He loves me. He's not going to leave me."

"Rose he got you pregnant."

"And I love it. Now get over the fact that _he _did it."

"I can't."

"Then you need too. And besides you were the one calling him a God so I don't see why you need to have a problem with this. _You're _the one that said _he _always does the right thing. Take your advice Mason and shut up before I can't blame these hormones and the mood swings for destroying you."

"I'll try Rose."

"That's all I'm asking Mase. I don't want to lose you." I walked over to him and engulfed him in my arms.

"You wouldn't. I'm going to stay right here besides you and cause all kinds of trouble." He whispered.

**A/N- Here's a fast update. I only got 16 reviews but oh well, I wanted this chapter up today to celebrate my birthday! **** Yay I turned 15 this morning!**

**Disclaimer; Richelle Mead owns all visible VA content used and I own nothing but the plot. Oh and the last line Mason said I don't own either, can anyone tell me from which BOOK not series it was from? ;)**

**IMPORTANT- I will be changing my pen name and until I do, this note will be up on every update til then. **

**Keep those names coming; they're greatly appreciated! And please review, they would make my day and be the best present ever! **


	15. Chapter 15

_Previously; _

"_No buts, you are one of my best friends and I don't want to lose you because if I have to choose between you or Dimitri, it sure as hell wouldn't be you. So get over it, and get over him. He got me pregnant. I'm having his children. I love him. He loves me. He's not going to leave me."_

"_Rose he got you pregnant."_

"_And I love it. Now get over the fact that he did it."_

"_I can't."_

"_Then you need too. And besides you were the one calling him a God so I don't see why you need to have a problem with this. You're the one that said he always does the right thing. Take your advice Mason and shut up before I can't blame these hormones and the mood swings for destroying you."_

"_I'll try Rose."_

"_That's all I'm asking Mase. I don't want to lose you." I walked over to him and engulfed him in my arms. _

"_You wouldn't. I'm going to stay right here besides you and cause all kinds of trouble of trouble." He whispered. _

Dimitri had left early to go work a shift, I didn't want him to but I would never say anything. Not only that it was his duty, something he was proud of and did whole heartedly. Regretfully I woke up with a pounding headache. On a Friday morning. Great and it didn't help that I had Advanced Bodyguard Theory today with none other than Stan. I could not stand that man. Or more like that asshole.

Following my usual routine, I jumped out of bed and puked into the toilet, this time no one here to help me. It was a little saddening but I knew if he could Dimitri would be there for me, and I of course would tell him to leave because it was gross. The thought was oddly comforting as the nausea engulfed me. After a couple more minutes, I got up, washed my mouth out and stripped down, deciding on whether I should take a quick shower or long soak.

Both had its perks but in the end I decided on a moderate soak. Not too long but not too short seeing as I had some time before I had to leave. The nausea had come on earlier today so that left a little time for me. Plus the soak would do some good to my cramping muscles. Any time to relax was a good thing. I had to take whatever I was given; I was not sure when this would happen again.

I slowly eased myself into the tub, one of the perks of being in Dimitri's room, and sighed as the heat seeped through my skin. I stretched my legs out and crossed my feet at the ankles. One arm rested the edge of tub and the other hand rested on my stomach, head lolled back and eyes closed. This was heaven, or well as close to heaven. Moments like this were far and in-between, and this was something I would enjoy.

I moved my hand in slow lazily circles, feeling the twins wake up and move excitedly. I smiled after I felt a kick and rubbed over the spot to soothe the hurt that came from it. It was hard, no doubt them getting their father's strength. I was certain they were getting his size too. There was no way they could be doing this if they weren't going to come out just like their father.

My cravings had started way early this morning. Three AM to be exact. I was tossing and turning feeling empty, trying to figure out what it was. My mouth felt weird and I could taste the distinct sweetness of chocolate. I had started drooling, I had always loved the stuff but this was different. Since I adamantly believed in doing things for myself, without waking Dimitri, I removed his arm from my stomach and quickly exchanged it with my pillow.

I stealthily moved out of the bed, praying that none of the springs would creak. I turned back to look at Dimitri and saw him cuddling my pillow, it almost in his face. He was lying on his stomach, limbs spread every which way and hair all over. I smiled at the carefree expression on his face, and bent over him stroking those silky locks out of his face, hoping the action wouldn't cause him to wake. I lived for seeing him like that.

Satisfied that he would not wake up, I walked over to the kitchen and opened the fridge door, there was a little light but I had closed the bedroom door just a smidge. I rummaged through the shelves looking for what I wanted. I opened each of the shelves and searched thoroughly for the dark sweet substance. When I didn't find it there, I started taking out pitchers of milk and water, placing them on the counter because I didn't have enough hands.

I groaned when it didn't come into my sight so I ended up taking everything out of the fridge until it was empty save for a box buried at the bottom. I bent down trying to pull it out but it was wedged in there. I pulled harder, hoping it would give way and give way it did. Confused as to what it might be, I placed it on the counter and opened it, surprised to find what I did. What had he put in there?

Beer.

There were about a good dozen or so bottles packed neatly and tightly together. I stood there dumbfounded and in shock. Beer? I guess the stoic guardian we saw wasn't always aloof. I smiled wryly to myself and decided to go hunt for more like this, chocolate long forgotten. He was only human, and finding the beer made me happy. He was more like me and everyone I knew than I had thought.

I started at the cupboard closest to the fridge and made my way down and across, piling everything onto the counter. The last cupboard was the one under the sink, and there was a bottle shaped parcel wrapped in a dark cloth. I smiled to myself, and pulled it out, unwrapping it.

I smiled to myself when I hit the jackpot. It was a bottle of Russian Vodka. Or as I liked to call it, rocket fuel. The stuff was strong enough. I backed up until I felt something hard hit my hip and it started to throb. I bumped into the counter and let out one of my favorite word out, "Fuck."

It hurt like hell. I raised my shirt up to inspect the damage and saw that a small bruise was already forming. I pressed on it and winced. What the hell I had never been so clumsy; I just wanted some damn chocolate.

"Roza?" I heard a sleepy voice say. The light turned on and I saw Dimitri, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "What's going on?"

"Uh nothing here comrade, go back to bed." I moved over to him, going to push him in the right direction hoping sleep was still overpowering him but I knew better than to trick a guardian as skilled as Dimitri. At least it was worth a try.

He was now fully awake and his eyes trained on the room, seeing the mess I had created. His eyebrows rose in suspicion as he looked down on me. "Rose?"

I bit my lip and gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry comrade, I was just looking for chocolate. I had a craving."

He nodded his head and crossed his arms. "I see. Why didn't you just wake me then instead of emptying the whole kitchen?"

"You looked so peaceful sleeping and I didn't want to deprive you of much needed sleep. I heard when you came in at one."

"Oh Roza, I'm trained to operate on no sleep. You could just woken me. Did you find what you were looking for?" He gave me a knowing smile, slightly waving his hand around the now dismembered kitchen.

I pouted and walked into his arms, relaxing when I felt them secure safely around me. "No." His hand found my hip and he squeezed. I wouldn't have yelped if it wasn't the one I banged.

"What's wrong?" Dimitri had a panic stricken look on his face.

"Relax comrade, just banged my hip." I told him as he lifted up my shirt to check. He squatted down so he was eye level with the bruise and placed a tiny peck on it, lips staying longer than intended for. The small kiss sent shivers through me.

He rose back up. "There, a kiss to make it all better."

"Well I think one needs to be here for it to be fully better." I said as I pointed to my lips. He chuckled and bent down pressing his lips to mine. I reached up and locked my arms around his neck, pulling him down so I could press my lips to his harder. It ended too early for my liking but I resided as I rested my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"Go back to bed Rose, I'll clean this up and come back soon." I started to protest. It was my mess and I should be the one to clean it up but he silenced me, saying I needed the sleep because no one wanted to face the wrath of a sleep deprived pregnant Rose Hathaway. I glared at him for that and punched his arm playfully. I rolled my eyes but complied with his wishes on one condition.

"Carry me." He chuckled and my legs were swept out from under me as he nestled me close to his chest and walked slowly back to the bedroom, laying me down gently in the middle of the bed. He pulled the covers up and tucked them around me, kneeling at the height of the bed when I turned on my side to face him.

"I found something though."

"Oh yeah? What was that?" Dimitri asked, a smile amused smile on his perfect lips.

"A case of beer at the bottom of the fridge."

He looked at me sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. I looked at him expectantly, awaiting an answer. "I like to have a drink every few days."

My eyes bugged out. I expected him to say a couple times a month but a drink every few days? "Every few days?"

He nodded. "What about the vodka?" I asked with two raised eyebrows because I still couldn't do one.

"Eh a couple times but I haven't really touched it since I've been gone."

That was the perfect window of opportunity I needed. "You still haven't told me where you went. I've let you have your own space Dimitri and allowed you to tell me in your own time but for god's sake it's been two weeks! I think I deserve to know why you left me like that. This relationship needs to be built on honesty and that can't work if there are things hidden. Dammit Dimitri, I'm not under you anymore, I'm your equal. And I'm not breakable because I'm pregnant so stop treating me like it!"

Dimitri's mouth gaped and I realized to the full extent what I had done. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. It's the hormones; I did it with Mason too yesterday. I am so sorry Dimitri." I hated blaming it on them, but I was outspoken, but not mean, at least not with the people I cared about.

"It's alright Rose, I understand and I know I haven't told you yet. It just seems like every time I go to tell you, something happens and I don't want to ruin that happiness with my bad news. I know you're not breakable, and I've never thought of you as lesser than my equal."

I felt so bad after he confessed that, that I literally broke down in tears. He gathered me in his arms and let me cry on his shoulder, stroking my hair to slowly calm me. "I'm so sorry." I whispered into his neck.

I pulled back to look at him in the face. "I love you too."

"It's okay milaya, it's what couples do. But at the end of it we come out stronger. I love you too Roza."

I nodded and gave him a quick peck on his lips. "I'll come back and tell you everything after I go clean up the kitchen."

And now sitting in the tub, I reflected on what Dimitri had told me. It was horrible. Not at all what I had been expecting. After what his father did to his mother time and time again, being beaten repeatedly by his dhampir son and kicked out he had the nerve to show up 11 years later? And doing the same thing over? The man was even worse than I had first suspected.

Dimitri had told me he had found his mother, abused with finger-like bruises and that Anton had burned her, it was horrible. And how he pushed Sonya into labor, giving birth to Iryna. I wanted to have a go at him and kill him, even though he was Moroi. I had gotten all worked up in bed and it took Dimitri another 5 minutes to calm me down before he went on with the story. It just had been more than I thought it could be.

He did finish and after hearing it, I foolishly felt stupid for what I thought he left for. I fell asleep with a still a guilty conscience after voicing my stupidity to Dimitri and having him tell me that I was not and he was the stupid one for not calling and explaining. I should have known he would never leave me for no reason.

But now, in the tub, after some much needed relaxation, the guilty feeling no longer covered me. I got out of the tub as soon as my fingers had started turning pruney. I towel dried my hair and walked into Dimitri's bedroom, opening the top of his dresser drawer, the one he had reserved for me. I put on a uniform and while my hand was searching on top for my hairbrush, I felt paper and picked it up, reading. A smile immediately on my lips as I saw the handwriting.

_Roza,  
I had an early shift so I didn't want to wake you. By the time you're probably getting this note, you're probably all ready for classes. I made you breakfast and left you a treat to soothe your craving if you still have it. Also, I've asked Alberta if I can take over your combat classes so I can keep an eye on you and the babies at all times_.

Oh, there he was. His overprotective side coming out. I rolled my eyes and kept reading.

_Don't aggravate Stan this morning. I'll see you second period. I love you.  
Forever yours,  
DB_

Like I aggravate Stan on purpose. Ok, so that was stretching it a little bit. But he was like a short fuse for me. Ugh, I pulled the brush through my hair and walked over to the kitchen where I noticed a plate of toast and scrambled eggs and a side of chocolate doughnuts. I salivated seeing them and immediately dug in, putting the toast and eggs aside. He surely was one hell of a man.

Once I finished everything I grabbed my bag and headed over to Advanced Body Guarding, meeting up with Eddie and walking us in together. I found Mason and we headed over to him, making our way to the back of the classroom all the way at the top. Luckily Eddie towered over me at six foot so my face wasn't that noticeable but they were a few surprised faces. It figured.

I turned to the front of the room and unfortunately made eye contact with Stan. He smirked at me. "Oh what do we have here? Is it the one and only Rose Hathaway?"

Everyone turned to look at me, all with shock written on their faces. I could feel myself start to get all riled up but Mason put a reassuring hand over mine. I smiled, grateful for the action. I was at least glad that he and Eddie were here. I had their support and that was all that mattered.

"So nice of you to grace us with your presence. What's it been? 2 weeks? Maybe 3?" His face said he was enjoying my being in the hotspot. Everyone anxiously awaited my response. I tried to collect myself before I answered.

"Two weeks Stan and I bet it's been hell without me here." I smiled sinisterly, egging him on. He made it all too easy.

He scowled. "On the contrary Hathaway, it's been pure heaven here without you. Now what was it you said that caused you to be absent for so long?"

"I didn't say anything." I ground out.

"Oh, well please enlighten me."

"It's none of your business Guardian Alto." Eddie said. Oh Eddie, what are you doing? I looked over but he looked determined, he looked even more agitated than I felt.

"Mr. Castile, covering up for Hathaway? Rumor has it that you were taken somewhere due to bad behavior?" Alto said looking over at me. Why was he even doing this? He was supposed to be the fucking adult here.

I spoke up. "Yeah that's all you heard, a rumor because you're not a respected enough guardian to handle the truth." I said smugly. I turned to Eddie. "Really Eddie? Guardian? He'd be lucky if he was called a janitor. He can't fight at all!"

The class snickered. "Wild, disobedient, insubordinate aren't you Hath-"

"Yawn, those words have already been taken. Can't think for yourself Stanny Boy? Maybe something's a little wrong up there." I pointed to my temple as he turned beet red. "Ever considered checking it out?"

Everyone oohed at the comeback, and Stan sent a look my way. I was lucky if I didn't get kicked out today because class had barely started and I was already aggravated with him. Just like Dimitri said not too do. But I could not help it, he was just an asshole. I never could respect him; he never did anything to deserve it.

"Hathaway, one more time and you're out."

"Aww you're going to miss me so soon? Is that why you're giving me a second chance?" I smiled sweetly.

Stan was fuming. "Out!"

"Well would you look at that? A new record. Let's see if we can beat it tomorrow Alto, what do you say?"

"Out!" He yelled again, his face now red and tears spilling from his eyes, he was livid. I grabbed my bags and walked to the door, "Later boys." I called to Mason and Eddie.

I walked over to guest housing, wanting to pay Adrian a visit. I hadn't seen him in so long and the last time I did, I was pretty rude to him. The walk over to guest housing wasn't long but long enough that the soak from this morning had worn out and my muscles started to cramp again. I sighed well knowing my babies had a lot to do with that.

I sighed and rang the doorbell, leaning against the frame waiting for a most likely-no definitely- intoxicated Ivashkov.

"Little dhampir." I turned my head as I heard my nickname. I broke out into a smile and hugged Adrian. It looked like I had surprised him because after a few moment of his stiff posture he wrapped his arms around my midsection. I squeezed one more time and pulled back.

"Adrian, I'm so sorry for the last ti-"

"What are you doing?" He asked with a confused look on his face.

"I'm apologizing to you, something I never do, so if I were you I would shut up and listen." I pulled away giving him the meanest glare I could.

"And there she is." I glared at him again, my eyes narrowing. "But seriously, there's no reason to apologize. I know what and why it happened. So just come inside before I have to drag you."

Well I wasn't going to argue with that so I followed him inside, and almost raced back out at the foul odor. I turned my nose up in disgust at the smell of cloves, and whatever else he had in there. Adrian gave me a 'what did you expect look' and I rolled my eyes, opting to sit on the large couch. Adrian was not going to change, though I wished he would, for his own well-being.

The smoke smell was really bothering me, I didn't know if it was okay for the babies. Wasn't this like second hand smoke or something? Adrian sensed my discomfort and opened a window discreetly, although I knew his motives. He sat on his bed, with a look on his face, one I did not like. Like he was scrutinizing me.

I started to squirm under the intense gaze and fiddled with the hem of my top. I tried to conserve my breaths, only taking one when necessary to help prevent some smoke intoxication. Over on the counter, an opened bottle of vodka sat with a shot glass. I instantly remembered this morning and Dimitri. I like Dimitri being like this. It was different.

I looked back over to Adrian and saw he was looking at me normally now save for the glint in his emerald eyes. While I wondered what that was about, he walked over to the bottle and glass, bringing them over to his spot on the bed.

"So what's new with you Ivashkov?" I asked. Well knowing that nothing had changed.

"Let's start with you." I raised an eyebrow to this. "Just trust me." He gave me his signature smile that worked on most of the girls. Well, all except me, I was a taken woman.

He poured a glass full of vodka and offered it to me. "Here have a shot. You look like you could use it."

"I don't think that's a good idea." I squirmed in my seat and looked around the room again.

"The old Rose wouldn't have said no." He looked at me with that investigative look again. I sighed. He peered at me, piecing together answers and it looked as if a light bulb had clicked in that brain of his. "There's something different about you."

"Uh huh, there are a lot of things different about me; you're going to have to be a little clearer than that." I said.

"You don't have an aura anymore." What the hell was he talking about?

I looked at him, shocked at his words and frightened at what might follow. "What do you mean I don't have an aura?"

He looked at me knowingly. "I mean you have three. Rose I've only seen that in women who are going to get their bundles of joy in nine months."

My heart beat, erratically, but I was still calming myself down. I thought it was going to be bad, horrible even. But guessing I was pregnant? Big relief.

I placed my hand on my barely noticeable bump and rubbed. I smiled at Adrian and nodded. "Do they really have their own aura?"

It was his turn to nod. "Two rings, one pink and one blue around your stomach."

"Oh Adrian, I never thought I would want this but now that I do, I would never give it up." I felt as if Adrian would understand the best save for Lissa.

"I know little dhampir and I'm happy for you." He mustered up a smile on his face, and I could tell it was genuine, though it held a little bit of sadness.

"What's wrong Adrian?" I felt my maternal instincts coming out. Maybe I was meant to be a mother after all.

"It's nothing Rose." He looked at the clock on his bedside table. "Aren't you going to be late for your next class?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Is that you're not so subtle way of kicking me out?"

"No," He said, stretching the vowel. "Never." He gave me a wry smile as I stood up and walked to the door.

"Bye Ivashkov, see you later." I called as I closed the door behind me.

* * *

"Rotate!" A deep voice called out. It was familiar and immediately set little butterflies askew in my stomach. I walked up quietly behind him, tiptoeing, hoping he didn't detect me. I grabbed his arm and tried to flip him in a second but unfortunately, it backfired and I was the one who flipped. Much like the first time we met in Portland, Dimitri caught me the same way.

I smiled at him and then frowned when I didn't see him do the same back. Usually I would get a half smile or even a twinkle in the eyes. But nothing today.

"Start at the roundhouse and full body twist combo. Ashford! Over here!" Shrugging my shoulders, I started to walk away when Dimitri's hand shot out and captured my shoulder, halting me. By this time, Mason had ran up to us.

"Guardian Belikov, Rosie." He nodded towards Dimitri. When Mason said Guardian Belikov, he still had some distaste to his tone but one look from me had him sending a silent apology both our ways.

"Mason, I want you to practice with Rose today exclusively. You and Castile." Mason nodded and Dimitri turned to me. "Anyone else?" I knew what he was asking, and no one else knew of the pregnancy to practice with me. "Alright, stay away from the stomach." He said sharply.

And that's exactly what he didn't do. We were performing roundhouse kicks and stake combos, and one of his kicks accidentally landed on the upper part of my stomach, right above where the original target was.

"Fuck, damn I gotta get to the-" Then I remembered I has an audience. "What the fuck are all of you looking at?" Everyone scattered before I even finished talking with scandal written all over their faces.

"Rose, I'm so so sorry, you've gotta believe me. I didn't mean to. I swear I didn't. God Rose I am so so so sorry," Mason pleaded. He looked at me in pure shock and embarrassment, clearly wanting to do something else to make sure I was OK.

"God Mason, just shut up with your apologies and get Dimitri. I don't want to hear them. Things like this always happen-"

"But I should've been more careful. What is wrong with me," He pulled at his own hair, making the red locks even messier.

"Mase, just go get Dimitri." He nodded erratically and sprinted off in his direction while I clutched my upper stomach, trying to look inconspicuous and Eddie cooed over me making sure I was alright. I ignored him and he stopped after I stuck my middle finger up at him.

Oh no. I felt the familiar oncoming whoosh that only led to one thing. I grabbed Eddie's arm and pointed at my head hoping he would get that I was with Lissa now. He nodded, getting the connection and let me lean on him.

"I don't know Christian, I can just sense it." I- no Lissa- said, defiantly.

"But it's not both ways only one."

"Don't you think I know that Christian?" Lissa argued.

"But how can you be sure?" He was sure testing her patience. He whispered back because the Moroi were currently in Russian 2.

"Christian no buts! Rose has been able to sense whenever I'm in trouble and now I can sense her, I'm going to read into it and see what it truly is. What if the bond has developed into a two way bond instead of one? Can't you see how excited I would be?"

"I can, and it truly is amazing. But if you say Rose is in trouble-"

Lissa nodded similar to Mason, "I think it has something to do with _them_. Christian please," she pleaded.

His eyes widened at the mention of the twins, "Pretend to faint." Christian said dead serious.

Oh no. This wasn't going to end well. Lissa discreetly pushed back so her legs were out from underneath her desk. She slid her bum up to the edge of the chair and fell over. She hit the floor with a thud and immediately Christian was over her.

"Miss Dragomir, is everything alright?" Ms. Malloy said frantically rushing over to her. Lissa didn't open her eyes. Turning towards Christian she said, "Mr. Ozera, get her down to the clinic now."

He deftly slid his arms under Lissa's petite body and speed walked her out of class. When they were out and across the courtyard where it was deserted this time of day, he placed her back gently on the ground and Lissa made quick time walking over to the novice training grounds. Christia-

"Rose? Rose answer me," hands were shaking my shoulders and I looked up into Dimitri's worried face. "Rose, where did the kick land?"

I absentmindedly pointed to my stomach, mind still reeling from Lissa upcoming arrival. I intercepted Dimitri's hand before he could touch me. "Lissa's on her way." I started to get up when he pushed me back onto the bench; I hadn't even noticed I'd been placed there.

"Dimitri let go." I pushed his hands away and grabbed onto Eddie, using him as leverage to pull myself up. "If you won't take me to her then I'll take myself." I let go of my prop and started to make my way over to where Lissa last was. Hopefully she didn't get too far and I could intercept her.

"Rose." I ignored him and kept walking, increasing my pace hoping that he would get the hint. "Rose!" He called louder this time. I groaned internally.

Silence. I smiled and continued on until light footsteps pounded my way. "Roza, you need to get to the clinic."

Using his nickname for me told me that we had left the eyes of everyone else. "Comrade not now."

"Rose!" He said loudly and angrily making me flinch. Dimitri had never ever raised his voice that high at me before. I turned around, fuming. He probably expected me to be cowering but this only made me more mad. How dare he?

"What?" I said just as menacing. Our first fight as a couple. Woo hoo! Note the sarcasm.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"What does it look like? What have I been telling you this past 5 minutes? Your freaking charge is walking towards the most brutal part of the academy where she could get hurt! And you're doing nothing about it!"

"There are guardians to ensure that won't happen. What will happen is that I'm taking you to the hospital now."

"Oh so now you're telling me what to do? Is that how it works?" I could feel my anger and voice rising. "I am just the obedient woman who obeys everything she is told and walks two steps behind her man? Is that what I am?"

"Of course not Rose! How could you think that?" His hands made fists at his sides He said that as his eyebrows furrowed, I hated the way it made him look. "I would never treat you like that." He said a bit softer.

But the problem was I was starting to feel strange. His face was a blur. "Whatever Dimitri." With that I stalked off. "They come first." I yelled back. And I kept walking.

"No Roza, you'll always come first." I heard him say silently as he faded into the distance.

* * *

**A/N- Oh shcnap! Romitri just got into their first fight! Ooh what do you think is going on? Is it more than what we've just seen or something pushing Rose and/or Dimitri farther over the ledge? Tell me what you think! Tell me what you loved and what you didn't love so much so I can improve for next time! What about finding out that Dimitri drinks ;) or maybe Stan's class? **

**Thanks to my beta, she's awesome. And Richelle Mead owns all VA content. **

**Ok go check out my new story that I've recently adopted, it's called He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. You can search it or find it in on my profile. **

**Review! And until next time, **

**SarahBelikova**


	16. Chapter 16

_Previously; _

_"Rose!" He said loudly and angrily making me flinch. Dimitri had never ever raised his voice that high at me before. I turned around, fuming. He probably expected me to be cowering but this only made me more mad. How dare he?_

"What?" I said just as menacing. Our first fight as a couple. Woo hoo! Note the sarcasm.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"What does it look like? What have I been telling you this past 5 minutes? Your freaking charge is walking towards the most brutal part of the academy where she could get hurt! And you're doing nothing about it!"

"There are guardians to ensure that won't happen. What will happen is that I'm taking you to the hospital now."

"Oh so now you're telling me what to do? Is that how it works?" I could feel my anger and voice rising. "I am just the obedient woman who obeys everything she is told and walks two steps behind her man? Is that what I am?"

"Of course not Rose! How could you think that?" His hands made fists at his sides He said that as his eyebrows furrowed, I hated the way it made him look. "I would never treat you like that." He said a bit softer.

_But the problem was I was starting to feel strange. His face was a blur. "Whatever Dimitri." With that I stalked off. "They come first." I yelled back. And I kept walking._

_"No Roza, you'll always come first." I heard him say silently as he faded into the distance._

Oh god, all I wanted to do was run back into his arms and apologize for everything. All I wanted to do was give in, saying he was right. This was our first fight and I hated it, all I wanted to do was relent. But no, I had to stay strong. I wasn't going to let him be the boss of me. I was the boss of myself, and even though my resolve was slowly faltering I would not let it. Let him go back to his class and trust me enough that I could take care of the three of us. After all, it's my turn to leave. Cruel I know but I couldn't care less now. I'm sure I'm going to regret it later, especially after he told me why he left. I had my moroi to protect.

I was still fuming mad; the morning hadn't made it any better. I sighed quite loudly and tried stretching out my chest if that was even possible. Since I practically lived in Dimitri's room now, most of my clothes had been transferred over to his bedroom. I'm pretty sure when he retired for the day he would walk into his room to find clothes and undergarments strewn all over the floor and every handle possible.

My bras had become too tight for me now. They were perfectly fine yesterday. It was like overnight my breasts had gone up another cup size. Now I had to squeeze into them and even then they barely fit. I had to wear my most conservative one, with not a deep plunge for cleavage and cups that covered eighty percent of skin. And even that made my breasts push together and up, making me look like a first class hooker. On top of that I had to button my shirt up all the way to prevent any whispers. Not that I had succeeded with my reappearance making headlines around here. It made me feel uncomfortable confined.

Stan had been another contributing factor that had pushed me over the edge too. He didn't have to make my presence known to half the entire novice population at St. Vlads. I bet not even 10 minutes into class the whole school was buzzing with my alleged 'return'. Now I had the honor of students and staff both dhampir and moroi watch me like I was some kind of new species they stumbled upon.

My pace fastened, annoyed at Lissa too, that she would get out of class to check on me. It was supposed to be the other way around. Yeah I get it, I would've been too; surprised at the formation of two ways through the bond.

"Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir!" Her head whipped to the direction of my voice. "What the hell are you-"

"Rose!" She broke out in run, almost knocking me off my feet. Her lithe hands touched my bump, narrow long fingers spreading out. I felt that rush through me, the one that lifted you up and gave you a different high. Lissa's high from using spirit.

She pulled back her fingers, and stumbled a bit. "Lissa, here lean on me."

"No, Rose. You might still be…" She was passing out; I zoned into her mind and saw that she was dizzy and dehydrated.

"Christian, get her other side. We have to get her to the feeders." Without me even finishing my sentence he was already at her side, taking most of Lissa's weight, I would never admit it to him or myself but I was thankful for it. I was feeling Lissa's after effects too, her dizziness.

The moroi lady at the counter took one look at us, almost horrified and rushed into action. She pulled back the nearest curtain and Chris and I walked her into the room. "No," I heard her mumble out.

I was about to protest, but the older moroi did it for me first. "Princess, we have to get blood into you immediately."

"No, I want Alice." I groaned. Only her, only Lissa would want that old hag. And now of all times.

"Chris let's just take her, you and I both know that she's not going to drink unless it's from her." He nodded and as a joint effort we made it all the way down the hall to the last cubicle, sitting Lissa down in the seat gently. Alice offered up her hand and Lissa dug in with Chris standing behind her, holding her up because she had a backless chair. I gave Chris a nod to let him know I was leaving, I also pointed to my head signaling to him that I'd be in contact.

Now that I had taken care of Lissa, I had to take care of myself and more importantly my children. I walked as fast as I could over to the clinic, without attracting any attention since class just ended going into lunch.

I slipped in between the crowd, spotting fiery red hair and detoured fast. I didn't want to hear another string of apologies. When the large door came into view, I sighed and slipped in. I got some confused looks from the people in there, particularly the moroi. No doubt that they would talk. I just hoped it didn't get out.

"Do any of you know where Dr. Olendzki is?" I asked the blondes sitting at the reception desk. They looked at each other then back at me, popping the gum in their mouths. I thanked god everyday that Lissa wasn't like this. "Well?" I snapped.

They looked taken aback at my tone and I smiled in displeasure, rolling my eyes. "In her office." One of them said, she looked away repulsed that she had even talked to a dhampir. God I hated people like that. I just hoped when Tatiana gave her throne over to Lissa that Lissa's efforts in making our rights the same as theirs would pass over with everyone nicely.

I didn't even bother to thank them and made my way over to the office, knocking on the door. "Rose." Dr. O said, surprised to see me. "It's the middle of the day and your appointment isn't for a couple days."

"Yeah, we need to push that up to right now." I said giving her a look.

She recognized it and pulled her into the room, away from the eyes and ears of the banged and bruised and nosey that were out there. I took a seat on the chair opposite her desk. "What's wrong Rose?"

"I got kicked in the stomach, well upper stomach today in practice." Her eyes widened and I continued. "Then I got angry at Dimitri and stormed off, I don't know if that's bad too and Lissa used her magic on the twins, to see if they got hurt and healed them if they did. And I felt the after effects of spirit use, the dizziness and dehydration." I ticked the items off using my fingers for dramatic purposes and saw the doctor's eyes widen further with everything I said.

"Well Rose, let's get you up on bed and give you an ultrasound." She opened the door and led me into the new room, the one where my last couple checkups took place in. I hopped up, and she was about to squirt the gel on my now exposed stomach when I yelled out, "Wait!"

"What's wrong Rose?" What's wrong is that I felt empty, this felt wrong.

"Can you call Dimitri for me? He deserves to be here," I said chewing on my lip.

Dr. O smiled big, "Of course Rose. Anyone else?"

"Um do you think you could get Lissa if she's up to it?" I asked.

She said she'd be right back and walked out of the room. I focused and centered myself, entering Lissa's mind, willingly.

_Liss?_ I said projecting my voice through my mind.

_Rose?_ I heard Lissa's voice, shocked. It worked, it really worked. This bond is two ways now. I smiled to myself, feeling elated.

_Yeah Liss, it's me._

Even her squeal telepathically made my ear drums hurt, and my brain by default.

_Hey Liss?_

_Yeah Rose?_

_Could you shut up now?_

I saw her eye roll at me and did one myself_. I'm at the clinic, can you come? And can you get my mother?_ Asking her to bring my mom was a big step for me, but I was determined to fix our relationship, to be a better daughter and to have a better mother. Also I wanted my kids to have two grandmas.

I felt her surprise through the bond but she agreed. _Christian wants to know if he can come._

I groaned but relented. I'd also never admit that I cared about him and him about me. He had taken to caring about my kids too, and I loved him even more for that. Another set of Lissa squeals had the whole gang wondering what had gotten her excited.

Through her eyes I saw Mason and Eddie's confusion written faces. I debated on whether I should ask Lissa to ask them to come or not. It'd be good, but I didn't want a party in the clinic.

_Just have them come._ I quickly forgot that Lissa can read my mind. I knew I was already going to hate this stupid bond.

She laughed. _Payback is a bitch ain't it?_ That it was.

_Bring them. No one else though. I don't want people being too suspicious._

"Well Rose, everyone's been called as should arrive shortly. I've also cleared the waiting room."

"Thanks Dr. O. This is really great; I appreciate it a lot." I hoped my words conveyed just how much appreciation I held for her.

"You're very welcome Rose." She grinned at me and I couldn't help but return it. Suddenly the door burst open, Dr. O not looking the least bit alarmed but I was.

"I'm here," his voice sounded rushed. "Oh Roza," Dimitri said desperately.

I couldn't help, or didn't stop the tears running freely down my eyes as I opened my arms wide. Dimitri stepped into them without a second to spare and I was engulfed in his strong arms. I held tight to his neck, my arms locked together.

"I'm so sorry milaya," he whispered into my hair. "I'm so sorry."

I pulled away from him, only to look into those brown eyes that I knew I could drown in. "Oh god Dimitri, no I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have stormed off like that. You don't know how sorry I am. I hated that, I hated how we fought. I don't like fighting with you Dimitri, I love you."

Instead of answering with words, he pressed his lips to mine. It was everything but slow and sweet. It was rushed and frantic; almost like we were afraid of losing each other again. I heard the door open and close; I mentally thanked Dr. O who walked out to give us some privacy.

I ran my fingers through Dimitri's hair and held tight, opening my mouth to let him in when I felt his tongue brush my lips. Gladly I would let him take dominance this time. As his tongue tangled into mine, his own fingers ran through my hair.

Gradually the speed and intensity of our kiss wound down until we were slow and sweet, savoring each other. Our lips glided over the others, I never wanted it to stop. But I had to because my lungs were drained. But Dimitri never stopped as his lips traveled down my neck.

"I love you Roza. Forever and always." His hands trailed down my sides until they rested on my bump. "And I love you guys too," He said to my stomach after he kneeled down. Getting back up he pressed another kiss to my lips, one that would've escalated in a matter of time if we had not been interrupted. And by my mother of all people.

I heard the tapping of a foot and ignored it, pulling Dimitri's head back to mine before he broke the connection. But he unfortunately did when a not so subtle cough sounded. I sighed audibly, obviously annoyed. Dimitri stepped back and turned around to reveal the red headed woman who I called my mother.

More annoyed than embarrassed at our display of affection, which she should've been, she said, "Rose what's all of this about?" before I could answer her, Dr. Olendzki pushed her way past my mother and turned to me.

"Rose, it seems like you have a bunch of people waiting for you in the waiting room. Quite the popular girl you are. Would you like to see them now or after?"

"After is good. Mom?"

"Yes Rose?"

"Would you mind staying while I get my ultrasound done?" She looked thrown off by my request. I could've sworn her eyes were glistening.

"Of course Rose." She moved by my side and I hugged her, that action also throwing her off but after a second she returned it full force.

I caught Dimitri's eye, to see that he was smiling at me.

_Lissa? Do you wanna come in the room?_

She jumped at the chance and walked, or more like ran into the room trying to fight off a squeal. She walked over to my other side and grabbed my hand, shaking it up and down in excitement.

"Liss, relax you're going to shake my arm off."

"This is so exciting!" I rolled my eyes at her and motioned for Dr. O to get on with the show. I pulled up my shirt, feeling the cold goo drop onto my stomach then the probe move around. My mother started to get up and then gave Dimitri a look, something silent being exchanged between them.

"No Guardian Hathaway, it's alright." She nodded and sat back down, Dimitri moving behind me, kneeling down while resting his chin on my shoulder. I understood what he did; instead of sitting beside me, he let my mother have the chance knowing that this was the first step to mending our broken relationship. I kissed his cheek in thanks and turned my attention back to Lissa squealing.

Dimitri squeezed his eyes shut; ear drums no doubt still ringing since he was also next to Lissa.

"Look Rose! There they are!" I couldn't help but be happy at her enthusiasm. It was contagious and my own smile spread wide on my face. Probably the same for Dimitri because he let his guard down and he was smiling hugely at the screen too.

I looked over to my mom, to see her reaction and to my surprise she had a small upturn of the lips. I grasped her hand and held it with mine. "Those are your grandchildren mom; my children."

"I know Rose. They really are a miracle. Oh Rose, I love you."

"Me too mom, me too."

"Well Rose," I returned my gaze to the doctor. "The twins are perfectly fine, healthy and growing. Just a little shaken up but nothing to hurt them."

"Thanks doc." She handed me a couple sheets of paper towels and I wiped the yucky substance off me, pulling my shirt back down.

"Well mom," both my mother and me turned to look at the doctor, me not sure why my mom turned. "The expecting one." I smiled. "Do you want any pictures?"

"Lissa don't squeal." Was the first thing that came out of my mouth. Everyone else in the room started laughing; the look on Lissa's face was priceless. It looked like she was constipated, trying to hold her squeal in.

"Yes, as many as you can print. I'm sure everyone in the room would love one. The waiting room too." I said.

"Alright Rose, I'll see you outside?" Dr. O asked.

"I'll be there in a minute." I hopped down to the floor and turned to Lissa. "Don't think I haven't forgotten our conversation missy. We're still due for one." I said walking out of the room.

"Oh Rose, you'll make a wonderful mother." Adrian commented as he heard me chastise Lissa. I rolled my eyes, which I seemed to be doing a lot lately, but was glad that I had an outsider- sort of- reassure me that I wouldn't be a total failure.

"Rose!" I looked over to Mason to see his worried face. Here we go again. "I'm so sorry. I never meant to kick you there! Are they alright?"

"Mason, I told you to stop with the apologies and yes, they are. Wasn't anything bad, you can go back to the Mason I know." I winked at him.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

"Oh come here you dork." I stood on my tiptoes when he was right in front of me and ruffled his hair then gave him a big hug. "Stay dorky will you?"

"No promises Rose." He said playfully then took a seat on the couch back. I scanned the room and saw everyone including Christian, and Eddie…and that man that had answered the door for my mom that day. Upon further inspection, I could see the three boys looking slightly uncomfortable as they sat across from him.

I saw Adrian regarding him, almost like he knew the man dressed just as colourful as he had that day. I felt Lissa's own surprise and shock coming from the bond. My mother had her 'guardian mask' on now, and didn't reveal anything. But the thing that threw me off most was Dimitri's body tensing up behind mine, where he stood.

My eyes zeroed in on the goateed man, raking my brain if I had seen him somewhere else, for a sign of recognition since apparently everybody in this room but me knew who he was. But nothing came up. I opened my mouth about to say something when Dr. O returned, a stack of photos in her hand.

"Mr. Mazur…what business do you have here?" She asked. Mazur? I didn't hold anything to the name.

"Polina, how great to see you again." He said bemused, lost in thought. "It's been a while. The last time was graduation."

"Yes it was Ibrahim, now if you'll excuse me," Dr. O said. She walked off to me. "Here are your sonograms." She smiled one last time. "Don't hesitate if you need anything, I'll be in my office. I'll open up the clinic after lunch so if you want to get your party out of there before then…" She let the sentence hang and I got her meaning.

"Thank you Dr. Olendzki." Dimitri thanked her for the both of us.

I made sure to pocket one sonogram and give one to Dimitri before handing out the rest. I gave the first to my mom then Lissa, and the same went on until the four boys had theirs too. The Mazur guy looked at me with a smirk written on his face and a knowing look in his eyes. Too bad, I didn't know him. He wasn't going to get a picture of my children. I walked back into Dimitri's arms when he got up…

…And approached us. "Dimitri, how good to see you again." Wait what? I whipped my head to face Dimitri, confusion twisting my features.

"Zmey." Whatever that word was. The moroi and my mother all seemed to know it; it was in Russian and since Dimitri refused to teach me the language, or more like the swearing, I had no idea what it meant either.

"How is your mother and dear sisters, I haven't seen them in a while?" He asked. Okay, now I was getting pissed. How dare he ask about Dimitri's family? How did he even know them?

I intervened. "I don't know who you think you are-"

"Rose," Lissa said worried. _Don't aggravate him. You don't know who he is._

"You're damn right I don't know who he is but if he thinks he can waltz into our lives then he can waltz the hell out."

"Rose, I'm only saying this because I care about you in this moment. Stop right now." I turned to look at Sparky and raised my eyebrows.

"Why should I?" I challenged. I looked around the room to see my mother roll her eyes at my antics and the mobster guy look on with amusement.

"Roza I would stop if I were you, it's not a good thing to get on the Zmey's bad side."

"Who the hell are you anyways? First I see you in my mother's room and then you're in the waiting room at the clinic when I didn't even invite you-"

"Oh this should be fun."

"Shut up Ivashkov." I directed my attention back at him. "Time to start answering questions Old Man."

He laughed. "Well kiz, you see I had some business to take care of. And when my dear Janine called me I knew I had to come right away."

"And what business do you have with my mother?" I questioned.

"Well your mother and I, well we share the same interests. And by interests, I mean you."

"What the hell does this have to do with me?" I heard Dimitri gulp loudly behind me and a light bulb go off in Lissa's head and she didn't know how to block it so I heard everything, loud and clear.

"No…" I felt the colour drain from my face at the realization.

"Your young man over there knows. And it seems like the princess does too."

"Oh shut up."

His eyebrows rose. "Well I see my daughter has gotten one thing from me." He winked and rubbed his hands together.

**A/N- There's the next chapter, hope you guys liked. So we've seen what else is pushing Rose to be angrier, we now know of a development in the bond and it looks like we've met Abe. **

**A huge thanks to everyone who reviewed; it means a lot to me as an author! Do you guys think we can make it to 200? We're so close and with the amount of people who've read or reading this story is amazing! **

**So tell me what you enjoyed and what you'd like to see in a review!**

**See you guys next time,**

**Sarah**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all VA content used. I own nothing but the plot. Enjoy!**

_Previously;_

"_Roza I would stop if I were you, it's not a good thing to get on the Zmey's bad side."_

_"Who the hell are you anyways? First I see you in my mother's room and then you're in the waiting room at the clinic when I didn't even invite you-"_

_"Oh this should be fun."_

_"Shut up Ivashkov." I directed my attention back at him. "Time to start answering questions Old Man."_

_He laughed. "Well kiz, you see I had some business to take care of. And when my dear Janine called me I knew I had to come right away."_

_"And what business do you have with my mother?" I questioned._

_"Well your mother and I, well we share the same interests. And by interests, I mean you."_

_"What the hell does this have to do with me?" I heard Dimitri gulp loudly behind me and a light bulb go off in Lissa's head and she didn't know how to block it so I heard everything, loud and clear._

_"No…" I felt the colour drain from my face at the realization._

_"Your young man over there knows. And it seems like the princess does too."_

_"Oh shut up."_

_His eyebrows rose. "Well I see my daughter has gotten one thing from me." He winked and rubbed his hands together._

"You can't be my father." I said very adamantly. "There is no way in hell that you're my father; there's some screw up, some mistake." I crossed my arms and stomped my foot even though I knew, deep within, that he was my father. All the signs were there and frankly with this new confidence shared, everything lined up and made sense.

"Rosemarie Hathaway!" I turned my attention over to my mother who yelled at me. Her hands were in fists by her side and her face was turning red. "How dare you talk to your father like that? Apologize this instant!"

"Why should I?" I snapped back with the same intensity she used to yell at me. "It's not like he deserves it. What does he expect? Me to just drop everything and go running into his arms? I'm sorry but where was he the past seventeen years of my life? Where was he when I needed a father? Where was he when I needed advice? He was just as absent from my life as you fucking were!"

By the end of my rant, I was breathing heavily and on the verge of spilling tears. My body was shaking with rage, trembling with anger. Dimitri sensed this and rubbed my arms up and down comfortingly, until I was somewhat calm.

I knew it was unfair of me to yell at him but I couldn't help it. I had all this pent up frustration and I couldn't take them out, however much I wanted too. I wanted to be told differently; I wished I found out some other way than having my father see me for what? the first time as pregnant? I wanted him to find me differently, this so wasn't a good first impression.

I expected that our father daughter reunion would be one of those beautiful, teary eyed filled reunions with hugs and us crying on each other's shoulders, like you saw on TV. But 1), I don't cry and I doubted this Mazur guy would too and 2), reality TV is never real.

The silence was broken than none other than my _father_. Ugh, that was going to take some time getting used to. "Why don't we take this somewhere more private? Classes are about to start if I am not mistaken."

"We can go to my apartment, that's private enough and I'm sure that no one is going to pay me a visit."

"Nuh uh Ivashkov, I am not stepping a foot into your place unless it is aired out and cleared of all smoke and booze. I'm not risking having my children get lung cancer."

He looked a little hurt by my words and it was a little harsh of me but maybe it would be motivation for him to finally quit and find another vice.

"My room is big enough for us," my mom spoke up. "Unfortunately I know you all want to be with Rose but I'm putting my foot down, none of you are missing your classes."

Around the room there were groans; no one wanted to go back to class. Over to the side I heard Mason grumble that he had Slavic Art. I laughed and Mason catching it; gave me a huge grin.

"But Guardian Hathaway," Lissa began but was stopped before she could go farther.

"No Princess, I'm not standing for you missing your lessons."

"Fine but I'll be there the minute that last bell rings. You can bet on it." Lissa relented but not willingly. The others followed as she led them out.

"Alright, everyone out. Rose, Dimitri? You're coming with us. We need to go have a family talk." Janine turned and faced the door, walking in the direction. When I was sure she couldn't see me, I turned around to Dimitri and made a gagging motion.

To my surprise, he let out a little chuckle. "It wouldn't be that bad Roza."

"Have you met me? I'm the product of those two over there; don't tell me it'll it won't be _that bad_." Dimitri rolled his eyes and pulled me along but released my hand when we stepped outside and moved away from me a bit, making the space between us appropriate for the positions we held at school.

"Dimitri?"

"Yes Rose?"

"Take a different direction will you? It's becoming suspicious." He nodded, obviously hurt, not by me but by our circumstance and lagged behind, turning when we got to the main pathway. I would give anything if I could shout out from the rooftops that I was in love with Dimitri Belikov.

I myself lagged behind my parents, lingering a little more than a few steps behind them. For the first time since getting back to classes, I opened my ears up to the gossip that was circulating St. Vladimir's Academy.

As I approached a couple girls in a huddle, I heard the main item on their agenda. _Guardian Belikov_. I slowed my pace down a little, wanting to catch what they were saying.

"Isn't Guardian Belikov so hot?"

"I wish I were older, or he was younger…"

"I would totally tap that."

Oh god, I wanted to just deal with these girls. Pin them up against the wall and do _something. _I was possessive and didn't like hearing _my _boyfriend being talked about by other people. So I settled for a glare sent to them as I passed.

"Why is _she_ looking us like that? God is she the one that was walking with him?"

"Yeah I think she's his student, possibly more." I heard laughing after that. "She could never be though; she's not even remotely hot."

"Yeah, I'm totally hotter than her, any guy would be lucky to have me. Speaking of, here comes…"

I groaned, tuning them out after the conversation switched to the new guy that was walking up to them. Apparently they forgot about _Guardian Belikov _for the time being, hopefully forever. But how dare she? Everyone knew I was the hottest girl, moroi and dhampir alike. She wasn't even pretty with her skinny frame and barely there chest.

As I walked farther along, I kept one ear open to hear if anything else was circulating about us but nothing was. Older grades were farther ahead and the hot topic amongst them was the guy walking with the famous Guardian Hathaway who was _still _at the school. Eh, she was sort of a legend among us dhampirs here.

Not wanting to hear more about him than I needed too, my pace quickened and soon I was catching up to my mother and walking beside her. A couple whispers later of the Hathaway duo walking together, we finally reached her guardian housing door.

She promptly unlocked it ushered us all inside. I went straight for the bed, jumping on it and lying face down. In this position I was ready to take a nap. I sighed and closed my eyes for a minute.

A minute turned into a couple minutes, which in turn turned into an hour then a couple hours. Or that's what it felt like when I was awoken by the doorbell ringing. Apparently, my eyes were only closed for a few minutes, 3 to be exact when I looked at the clock.

While I fixed myself, Dimitri moved inside, standing in front of the door. "Geez comrade, you're not on duty. Take a damn seat; just looking at you standing is making my feet ache for you." I patted a spot on the bed beside me but he refused with a slight shake of his head and a nod to my parents. Of course no one else would pick up on it because no one knew him like I did.

Damn him and his being courteous. I wanted him next to me, holding me in his arms. I guess I would just have to settle for tonight…maybe we could take a nice long soak together. I yawned. Maybe not the soak.

"Well," my mom said breaking the silence…marking it for the second time today. "Rose, I'm sure you have questions for your father and I, why don't you go ahead and ask them?"

I nodded. "Who are you?" I directed towards Abe.

"Ibrahim Mazur at your service," he smiled. I returned it.

"Why?" He looked confused at my question so I clarified for him. "Why didn't you ever make an appearance in my life or even acknowledge who I am?

His face fell, and sadness glistened in his eyes. It was very prominent and hard to miss. "You were never planned Rosemarie-"

"Just Rose."

"Rose, but once we found out that you were coming into this world, your mother and I were beyond happy. I was ecstatic that I was going to have a child, even more so when I found out Janine was going to give me a girl.

I was happy, going through all of Janine's mood swings and cravings; I granted her every wish with delight because I knew in the end, it would pay off for both of us. We were going to get graced with our very own angel.

Then you were born. As I held you for the first time in my arms, I immediately knew that there was nothing in the world that would prevent me from giving you everything you wished for. The first year I had with you and your mother were heaven.

I became more occupied with you and neglected my work. Threats were coming fast and furious, directed towards not only me but you and your mother. I knew I had to get you out. That's when Janine and I decided to part ways, not only ripping my heart out but taking away my reason for living. The only thing I had going was the promise of finally meeting seeing you again when you turned an adult. Obviously we're a little early, but I wouldn't complain."

He smiled a genuine smile and a tear leaked out of his eye. His face radiated a glow that I couldn't describe but it was beautiful. "But I was always with you Rose, in soul and mind. Your mother sent me updates all the time and pictures. I got to see you grow up albeit not how I would've liked it but nonetheless I did. I've always and will always love you Rose, my daughter."

"Thanks Abe." I moved and got up off the bed, throwing my arms around him and hugging tighter when I felt his own arms wrap around me not even a second later. I squeezed my eyes shut, to prevent the tears from falling out but it was useless as they fell anyways. Maybe this was going to be one of those teary eyed, father daughter reunions after all.

"I hope we can give this a try kiz."

"Of course old man," I said using the nickname I'd created for him when he'd first called me that. "Hey, Abe? What does kiz mean?"

"It means daughter in Turkish."

"Cool, how do you say dad?"

From ear to ear that smile stretched and I could tell I'd made him happy by asking that. "Baba."

"Baba," I said trying out the word. He told me I had exact pronunciation. Then something I remembered something that was said earlier and I immediately wanted to know what it was. Call me impatient but whatever.

"Wait, you said you were receiving threats? What do you _work _as?"

"Well kiz, I'm the leader of the mafia…among other things."

My eyes bugged out of my head. "My father is a mob boss? Oh god, that makes me…a mob daughter…" Then the thought made me smile, I bit my lip, already planning.

"Roza," I knew that tone. It was the playful chastising that Dimitri usually gave me when he disapproved of my behaviour but also didn't because he thought it was funny.

"What?" I said as I faked innocence. "Anyways, can we continue this powwow tomorrow? Cause I'm so tired and everywhere hurts, so…"

"Of course Rose, I know what it's like. Must be worse having twins." Said my mom.

"Only the aches and the stupid morning sickness. Other than that, I love the whole experience," I looked over at Dimitri, remembering the craving for chocolate that night and couldn't control my mouth. Before I knew it, words were spilling high and dry, "especially when we were in bed one night and I woke Dimitri up to…"

My words trailed off and I gulped, realizing what I had just said. Dimitri looked like stopped breathing and was actually in fear. My mother on the other hand looked mad but there was something blocking her from fuming…Abe looked terse and his lips were stretched in a tight line. Without knowing it, I had just spilt the beans to my parents that I was sleeping with my mentor. Ok that sounded equally as bad.

"What do you mean 'when we were in bed'? Rosemarie?" Abe asked, revealing no emotion in his voice.

"Um..."

"Oh give her a break Abe," my mom jumped in.

"I will not give her a break, not when she's sleeping with her mentor!" Abe said voice hard.

"Sleep Ibrahim, not _sleep._" She turned to me, "I hope that's true Rose," to which I nodded very quickly. Back to Abe she returned. "And how do you think the twins got in there in the first place?"

"You mean to tell me that this man, a man seven years my daughter's senior got her pregnant?"

"Yes Ibrahim, that's exactly what I'm saying."

"Now explain to me how that's possible Janine, because you and I both know that they're both dhampirs."

My mother turned to me, "I think you guys should leave now, Dimitri you have to get back to work and Rose, you need to rest. I'll explain this to your father," She said sternly while helping me get down from the bed, even though I didn't need it, and giving me a gentle push out the front door.

"We'll see you guys later," she said as soon as we were outside. She waved bye once more and closed the door on us. Dimitri took hold of my hand and walked us back to his room where he made sure I was settled in, nice and good, on the bed.

"I'm going to go now; take a nap and I'll be back before you know it." He leaned down and placed a quick kiss on my lips, then gave me a hug to which I prolonged for as long as I could.

"Love you," I whispered.

"And I love you milaya. And our children very, very much. Sleep now," he laid me back on the pillow gently and caressed my hair softly as my eyes closed. The last thing I remembered before succumbing to the darkness was gentle lips lingering on my brow for a moment longer.

**Ok, so I'm still alive! Sorry for the long wait between updates guys, I sear it was never my attention to but I've now gotten a hold of school again from the long summer break. Oh how I wished it was longer…**

**I hoped you guys enjoyed the chapter, I had fun writing Abe, though it didn't come out exactly how I wanted it to but I'm happy with it. I love reading your feedback, it just makes my day! So remember to review on your way out! **

**Bye for now! **


	18. Chapter 18

**Heyo guys! I'm sorry to say this is not an update but a request. I've just completed one of my fics, The Notes of My Heart and done some recent thinking. 4 stories on my plate is a little much to handle now so I'm asking you guys, to choose which one I should focus on. Don't worry, all outstanding stories will be finished in their due time but I'm finding it easier to stick with one for now, finish it and then start a new one. **

**Please cast your vote on which story you'd like to see finished first. The options are,** It Doesn't Always Go According To Plan, He Loves Me He Loves Me Not and Stolen**. You can vote in two ways, leave a review on the fic that you'd want to see be done first or head over to my profile to vote on the poll. The poll ends in two weeks on Thursday. **

**After I've received your requests, it'll take me a while to get the next chapter of whatever it may be up. Some serious stuff has happened and it's gonna take a while to get my life back on track. But I plan for the ending of this month, beginning of November. Thanks for your cooperation and sticking with me so far, it means a lot to me! *insert heart here is FF let me***

**Thanks again guys!**

**Sarah**


	19. Chapter 19

**Ok! Hi guys! I'm back….finally! There's an M scene in this chapter, if you don't want to read it, it starts and the bolded and ends at the bolded.**

**Enjoy!**

_Previously;_

"_You mean to tell me that this man, a man seven years my daughter's senior got her pregnant?"_

"_Yes Ibrahim, that's exactly what I'm saying."_

"_Now explain to me how that's possible Janine, because you and I both know that they're both dhampirs." _

_My mother turned to me, "I think you guys should leave now, Dimitri you have to get back to work and Rose, you need to rest. I'll explain this to your father," She said sternly while helping me get down from the bed, even though I didn't need it, and giving me a gentle push out the front door. _

"_We'll see you guys later," she said as soon as we were outside. She waved bye once more and closed the door on us. Dimitri took hold of my hand and walked us back to his room where he made sure I was settled in, nice and good, on the bed. _

"_I'm going to go now; take a nap and I'll be back before you know it." He leaned down and placed a quick kiss on my lips, then gave me a hug to which I prolonged for as long as I could. _

"_Love you," I whispered._

"_And I love you milaya. And our children very, very much. Sleep now," he laid me back on the pillow gently and caressed my hair softly as my eyes closed. The last thing I remembered before succumbing to the darkness was gentle lips lingering on my brow for a moment longer. _

"I'm sorry Rose, Dimitri. I never had the right to yell at you like that; it's not like I've been present to have the right to do so. It's just that hearing about this situation tears me apart kizm, knowing that as soon as I've got you I'm going to lose you. I'd really like it if we could start over." My father said this, completely sincerely.

"I would love that," I said, meaning every word. Abe turned to look at Dimitri, who was sitting, for once, on the sofa in my dad's suite next to me.

"Of course Mr. Mazur," Dimitri said all business like. My father smiled and we continued with the small talk. Every piece of my life I verbally documented to him, his eyes smiled with every anecdotal I spewed his way.

"Oh Rose, you're just like Janine." When Abe said this, this time his eyes didn't smile with joy but held a far off look that I knew too well as a reminiscent. I let him have his thoughts to himself for a while, and when I saw that he wasn't coming out of whatever memory of my mother and him, I nudged Dimitri, who'd been quiet thus far, and nodded to the door. We got up quietly and walked to the door, closing it softly. Dimitri took my hand and we walked in comfortable silence until we walked past guardian housing and under the thick cover of the trees.

"What's going on comrade?" I didn't get an answer. "Comrade?" No answer. This time, when I tried again, I used his name, knowing it'd get his attention. "Dimitri?"

He looked down at me. Man I really hated that I wasn't taller. "Be patient Rose, you'll see in a bit."

"Be patient Rose my ass," I mumbled. "Now Roza, that isn't anyway to be talking."

Ne ne ne neyuh," I mimicked him incessantly. He looked at me, playfully disapproving and I rolled my eyes. We both agreed, or more like I signed my life away, when I said I'd curb my tongue and get my mouth all shiny clean. It was hell, trying not to swear. But we can't have my children getting  
my bad habits. I hoped they took after their father in that way.

"Okay, close your eyes now milaya," Dimitri said. I sighed dramatically, heaving my shoulders for more of an effect but I did close them. Hands covered my sockets still, and guided me towards our destination.

"Okay, open them." He said as his hands moved from my face and down to my waist. As I opened them, the cabin where the best night of my life happened, came into view. I gasped. It looked, well it looked lived in. I don't know how to describe it but, it looked cozy...it looked perfect. Through the windows, I could see the lights were turned on. I walked up to the door, a delicious smell wafted through the hollowed wood. Around the cabin, the land looked clean, it was clear, free of weeds, buds were blooming and the leaves were starting to grow back on trees.

"Wait, it's not supposed to be 'this' way," I said, waving my hands towards the trees and flowers. "I had a little help from a certain blonde princess." I smiled; it was right up Lissa's alley to jump right in when it came to romance. And Dimitri was the embodiment of perfect romanticism.

**Start of M scene**

I smiled, and kissed him. My lips met his, almost cautiously, dancing around his mouth, placing little pecks until I met his wonderful, full, kissable lips. Slow and sweet was the way to describe the short skirted kisses that left me wanting more immediately after his lips left mine for a millisecond. As my hands crept up his chest, I raised myself on my tiptoes, pressing our lips together, hard. Tired of this teasing, I locked my arms behind my lover's neck and pulled him impossibly closer to me.

My tongue found its home, roaming Dimitri's mouth, teasing every line and tract I could find. My comrade's hands travelled down my sides, leaving goosebumps in their wake. When they settled on my lower back, he pulled us together, closing that tiny gap between our midsections. After a few seconds, Dimitri traced his fingers of one hand around my waist, to reattach them just above my belly button, leaving the other on my back to keep holding me.

I moved my hands down to Dimitri's shoulders, rubbing gently but sure to get him off. Taking the hint, he placed both his hands on my thighs, ready to hold me when I jumped. I leaped up and locked my legs around his waist, squeezing tight but not tight enough to cause a pain pain but a pleasure pain. I got the answer I was looking for when Dimitri groaned, and when his mouth detached from mine, my mouth never left his skin. I kissed all around his jaw and traced the outline of his lips with my quote on quote, wonderful tongue.

Down his neck I travelled and lit up like the fourth of July when I found his Adam's apple. Like the sweetest lollipop, my lips wrapped around the little bump and I sucked hard, hearing suction and grinning internally. When I increased the speed and the intensity of my suckling, we almost fell to the ground because Dimitri's knees went slack.

I let out a shriek and his head dived in on mine, fusing our mouths again as one. My back hit the door and Dimitri's tongue shoved into my mouth, fighting for dominance. I fought back with all I had too because I knew the sooner one of us gave in the other, the sweet passion would be gone. Our tongues wrestled, dancing a fiery tango, hands roamed every which way. My hands tangled in his hair and tugged until they were so knotted in that I didn't know what skin was and what hair was anymore.

Dimitri's hands now caressed the inside of my thighs that had me letting out a growl so loud I'm pretty sure everyone inside the Academy could've heard. I brought one hand down and I found the doorknob, trying to get it open but I couldn't; it was locked. When my hands were gone for too long, Dimitri let out an animalistic groan and put his and on top of mine, snapping the lock with a force.

We tumbled back and Dimitri dropped me on the bed, and I looked up at him with lust in my eyes, not at all surprised to find Dimitri looking back at me through black lust-love filled orbs. I licked my lips hungrily and was breathing heavy, my chest heaving with every laboured breath I took. I smiled deviously and sensually trailed my fingers down my neck, and. Into the valley of my breasts, popping each button on my blouse as I got farther down until I was left in a black bra, untucked top and skirt.

Dimitri closed his eyes and that's when I knew he was about to lose all self-control he had left. I pulled out the last stop that I knew would make him go mad and ravish me like an animal. I ripped of my top, revealing my bump that was getting bigger every day. I started to trace patterns and moaned, closing my eyes and removing them when I felt two larger ones replace mine. "Dimitri," I whispered, breathlessly. "Please."

Cool touched my stomach, Dimitri started kissing all over the bump, nipping occasionally then soothing the sting with a swirl of his tongue on the bite. I gasped, Dimitri was pressed right where I wanted, our two sweet spots coming together and making me buck wildly. Using the opportunity, Dimitri's hand snaked around my back and in mere seconds my bra was off me and on the floor. My hands made quick work of his buckle and I pushed his pants down to his knees, using my toes to get them far down as I could. When I could go no farther, Dimitri kicked them off and I moved up to his shirt, ripping the buttons when it took too long to un-button. I hope he didn't get emotionally attached to that one. The only piece of clothing left was my skirt. My panties had long been torn off and thrown somewhere.

Once he got the material off, Dimitri didn't waste time in making us become one. With every thrust, our kisses picked up harder and our chests pressed closer together. Dimitri picked up the pace but it wasn't fast enough so I switched us so I was on top I and rode him, faster and harder. His hands grabbed at my chest and a couple flicks later, I was sent over the edge with Dimitri following. Dimitri kept moving, helping us both ride out our orgasms.

**End of M scene**

I collapsed on top of Dimitri, worn out and ready to sleep. Dimitri held me close to him, hands forever on the twins. "I hope they have your eyes," I said. I turned around to face him, staring into those deep bottomless pits I could happily drown in. "Beautiful, absolutely amazing. I love your eyes comrade." I smiled and kissed the corner of his eyes.

"Well I hope they have your hair," Dimitri ran his fingers down my mane and twirled a lock around his finger when he reached the end. "Promise me you'll never cut it." I laughed, I loved Dimitri's obsession with my hair. I mean I loved my hair but when we add Dimitri into the equation, he takes it to a whole new level that I can't even fathom solving.

"Actually comrade, I was thinking when the twins come, I could cut it into a bob so they can't grab my hair and pull." I had trouble keeping a straight face when I saw Dimitri's panic stricken one. I was actually considering cutting my hair in a couple months.

"No. Promise. Me. Roza. That. You. Will. Never. Cut. Your. Hair." Dimitri enunciated every word clearly. I laughed, I couldn't help it. He was just so serious about something so insignificant compared to the other issues we had.

"Of course not Dimitri, god I just love playing with you." I smiled wide and kissed him. "Well is that how it is my milaya," Dimitri said with an eyebrow raised. His fingers latched on to my sides lightning quick and tickled.

"Please, Dimitri! Stop it, I can't breathe!" "Say you'll never cut your hair Roza." When I didn't answer the tickles came faster.

"Okay okay!" I said, surrendering. "I'll never cut my hair, I promise."

He let go of me and rolled over onto my own side of bed, lying on my side. I yawned, and tired I told Dimitri, "I want our kids to know Russian. You know, since they'll be half and all. They'll get the chance to grow up feeling more close to their nativity, unlike me."

"Of course Roza," he said. I looked at the clock; it was a minute past midnight. "Happy birthday my love," Dimitri leaned down to kiss me, it was sweet and exactly how it should've been. I hugged Dimitri and held on while he reached to the drawer in the night stand beside his side of the bed. He pulled something out and gave it to me.

It was a rectangular shaped box, wrapped in silver wrapping paper and a bow on the top. I took off the top, and pulled out the two slips of paper. The first thing I saw was American Airlines. I flipped it open. "No way," I didn't make any attempt to hide the smile that burst out on my face. "You did not, get out of here."

Dimitri nodded. "Shut up. We are not..."

"We are too Roza. We leave in a month. Dr. Olendski has cleared you to fly and Alberta's agreed to let you take your trials in three weeks."

I was so happy, it was indescribable. Eek! I was having a Lissa moment but I didn't care. I squealed. "We're going to Russia!"

**So you guys have probably figured out by now that IDAGATP is the winner of the poll. I'll be finishing this one first then my others. So how'd you guys like it? It was the first M scene I've written in a while so tell me how I did with that. Tell me what you think is going to happen, tell me anything you think! I love hearing from you guys! **

**Ok **** Bye for now!**


	20. Chapter 20

Hello my dear readers!

This AN is just to say I will be updating It Doesn't Always Go According To Plan tomorrow! But only if I have your help. I'm stuck, trying to get around a little disability called Writer's Block. Particularly around the subject of presents. Now if anyone has ideas on birthday presents for Rose's 18th birthday please help me out! Presents from anyone and everyone, for example Abe and Janine, Lissa and Christian, Mason and Eddie etc.

And remember! The sooner I get these the faster I update! So please please help me out! And you'll get credited next chapter too so fire away!

Thanks guys!


	21. Chapter 21

_Warning! There is an M scene! It's marked though! Enjoy!_

_Previously; _

_I looked at the clock; it was a minute past midnight. "Happy birthday my love," Dimitri leaned down to kiss me, it was sweet and exactly how it should've been. I hugged Dimitri and held on while he reached to the drawer in the night stand beside his side of the bed. He pulled something out and gave it to me._

_It was a rectangular shaped box, wrapped in silver wrapping paper and a bow on the top. I took off the top, and pulled out the two slips of paper. The first thing I saw was American Airlines. I flipped it __open. "No way," I didn't make any attempt to hide the smile that burst out on my face. "You did not, get out of here." _

_Dimitri nodded. "Shut up. We are not..."_

_"We are too Roza. We leave in a month. Dr. Olendzki has cleared you to fly and Alberta's agreed to let you take your trials in three weeks."_

_I was so happy, it was indescribable. Eek! I was having a Lissa moment but I didn't care. I squealed. "We're going to Russia!"_

**DPOV**

"Tell me one more time this isn't a dream." Rose had her arms wrapped around my torso from behind as she rested her head on my back and I stood at the stove, flipping our omelets.

"Roza, it's not a dream." I turned around to face her. "We're really going to Russia my love."

"It just seems like it's just a dream though," she told me. "It's so… dream like."

I laughed and Rose smiled. I knew she always lit up like a light whenever she saw me smile or laugh, and especially if it was for her.

"How about breakfast in bed?" I said with a raised brow, wanting to give her the specialist of special treatment today, not that I wouldn't do this every day, but more than usual because other wasn't every day you turned into an adult. I still remember my eighteenth birthday. I was then legally allowed to drink in Russia, not that I didn't when I was younger...but to celebrate, Ivan took me to a bar and we spent the night drunk off our asses, passed out for more than a day afterwards.

"Sounds like a plan comrade," Rose said bringing me back to the present. She turned around and walked back to bed in nothing more than her panties and my shirt that had been discarded from last night.

I quickly put two slices of bread into the toaster and then switched them with white bread when the others popped. God knew how much Rose hated whole wheat bread and like products.

I pulled out the cutting board and sliced some oranges into half-moons and placed them on the side with some berries. In a plate, I put the slices of bread and eggs with some bacon and in the glass beside, I poured some orange juice out for Rose and me.

With the tray, I walked into the bedroom to see Rose sprawled on her stomach, the covers off her and the sun shining down on her through the open window. I heard a loud inhale and then a voice following. "I smell bacon." She opened one eye and jumped at me in a heartbeat. "Gimme."

I picked up a piece in between my fingers and placed it in her mouth when she opened. "Hmmm."

"That good?"

"That good...more," she demanded. I chuckled and piece by piece Rose took the food I offered her and I took the food she offered. Back and forth, as we fed each other, nothing more than a smile or a knowing look was needed to convey those three little words that changed lives. When all the food was gone, Rose and I lay side by side on the bed, her tucked into my side and my arm wrapped protectively around her.

Rose sighed contentedly and I mimicked her action, our breathing matching each other's to a tee, reminding me that we were always in tune with each other. I thanked God every day for blessing me with a woman so wonderful, so perfect for me that no other would ever compare to what I hold in my arms right now. And I thanked God everyday too for giving Roza and me what we knew we could never have but what we've been gifted with.

I placed my fingers on her stomach, raising the shirt ever so slightly so that her bump came into view. Rhythmically, my fingers began stroking up and down and soft patterns into her smooth skin.

"Comrade, they like that." Rose placed my hands on top mine and pressed down, letting me feel them kick. I smiled out of joy and locked our fingers together, kissing her slightly bruised knuckles.

"I love just lying here in bed with you, I wish we could do it every day," Rose said hopefully.

"Me too. This is one of the best feelings, you in my arms and our children in between us."

"Can we stay here all day? Please?" She gave me the pouty face knowing all too well that I couldn't say no to it. "After all, it is my birthday."

"Alright." I said knowing that this was the only way from not making her suspicious.

"Really?"

"Really." I said again.

* * *

Two hours later, I quietly got up from the bed where Rose lay sleeping and moved over to the closet by the front door, pulling out the cardboard boxes that were stacked there and carried a couple over to the bathroom where I started unpacking the contents. I got so caught up in my work that I didn't notice the footsteps coming up behind me.

"What's all of this? Hey and why is all our stuff here?" Rose asked.

I could've kicked myself for not being more aware. After all, I was a guardian and this was a vital part of who I was. When Rose kept looking at me waiting for an answer, with that face that I knew she wasn't going to take any crap, I knew I had to reveal the truth and by default, ruining part of her birthday surprise.

"Happy birthday from Alberta."

**RPOV**

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused. This just didn't make sense, it didn't connect. Dimitri putting all our stuff into this new cabin, and I mean _all, _then telling me happy birthday from Alberta didn't add up smoothly.

"I mean that Alberta gave you this cabin. It's now yours." Dimitri said.

"Why would Alberta give us a cabin?" I was still confused, as to why Alberta thought I needed a _third _living space. I had my dorm room, which was never in use these days and she must know that I spend my nights with Dimitri now.

"_Yours. _I mean that the cabin is now yours."

"Comrade, stop speaking in riddles and why the hell do you keep saying _yours? _It's ours, get it? What's mine is yours and what's yours is mine now so whether you like it or not, get used to it cause this current situation," I waved between the two of us, "is not changing for a while, or _forever. _So put up with it and start saying _ours._"

Dimitri just smiled. "Ours. This cabin is now ours." I smiled at him. He looked at me with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes and my smile deepened upon realization of what was going to come next. Dimitri stood up to his full height from his squatted position on the ground. I had the honour of watching those muscles contract beautifully, and I'm pretty sure I started to drool.

Dimitri walked over to me, crossing the small distance between us in less than a stride and placed one hand on the small of my back, and the other tangling in my hair, pulling my body closer to his. Dimitri leaned down so his mouth was next to my ear and in it, he whispered, "so if that's your logic then your body, now belongs to me, isn't that right Roza?"

**Start of M scene **

His words flew over me, causing goosebumps to rise on skin. "Yes." I moaned out, breathlessly. I was barely able to speak with the way his hands moved, ghosting and tracing patterns in my body, making me all hot and bothered.

"Tell me Roza, what do you want?" he asked.

"I want you Dimitri, I want it now." These hormones were driving me over the edge and we hadn't even done anything. For gods' sake, he hasn't even kissed me yet!

"What's mine is yours Roza." He said huskily. With his voice doing things to me, I grabbed his face and pushed our lips together, fusing them together until we were one. My hands locked around his neck and tangled in his hair while Dimitri picked me up, walking me out of the big washroom and dropping me on the bed.

I grabbed at his clothes, ready to rip off his shirt and get my hands on those rock hard, sexy abs. So you could imagine my surprise when his hands captured mine, holding them to his chest and effectively stopping me from advancing. When he saw my "what gives?" face, he promptly answered me, satisfying my curiosity.

"This is _my_ seduction Roza." I groaned and then groaned some more when he took forever in touching me once again. He started with his shirt, raising it up over his head then tossing it behind him somewhere. His pants came off next and finally Dimitri was only clad in his boxers.

Dimitri advanced towards me, straddling me on the bed but keeping his weight off me. He looked down at me, his hair creating a curtain around us, making the moment even more special. Slowly, he leaned down and pressed his lips ever so softly to the corner of my mouth, then moving them so when I turned I was met with a devious smile.

Dimitri lowered himself to my neck, pressing butterfly kisses and nipping occasionally, making me whimper out more. When my hands reached out to touch him, his grabbed mine and held them up above my head, pinning them there. Slowly, his mouth moved lower until he reached the top of the shirt I was wearing and deliberately took his time in unbuttoning each button.

With every snap, his fingers touched my skin, and left a path of sparks in their wake. My hips bucked up, meeting his and I grinded into him, wanting some sort of release from the aching heat that was building up rapidly between my legs.

My shirt was thrown somewhere across the room and my curves were gently caressed, hands resting on my lower back and lips meeting mine slowly. The kiss was everything, it was sweet and perfection. The way our lips glided over each other, the way the enveloped each other were the absolute epitome of what love was. Or what I thought it was.

"I want to make love to you Roza, I want to take the time and make you feel how you've never been felt the way before. I want to worship my goddess." Each word was followed with a kiss down the center of my body, until he reached the spot below where magic happened. He looked up to me from where he was.

"What's mine is yours," I said. "I trust you and I love you."

"As I do you."

**End of M scene**

With that, everything else in the world was washed away as it only became the two of us. Only we mattered right now, the feel of your other half, matched with your body like they were made for you. True to his word, Dimitri took it slow, and made me feel more loved than I've ever felt like before in our time together. He took me to new places that I hadn't known existed until now, taking me to new heights and experiences.

When we were done, we laid back and relished in just being together. I took the absolute joy in being enveloped in Dimitri's arms, feeling safe and protected and loved, most of all. I felt tired, but I didn't want to close my eyes and fall asleep, fearing that if I did this moment would vanish right before our eyes.

The phone ringing brought me back from where I was falling asleep. Dimitri reached over and picked it up, bringing it to his ear then putting it back on the side table after hanging up a few seconds after.

"What was that all about?" I asked him curiously.

He sighed and looked at me. "Headmistress Kirova wants to see you in her office, and I am to escort you down there."

"But it's a Saturday, why would you be with me?"

"Well no one knows that I'm with you right now. Alberta's instructions were to go get you and bring you down to the office."

"Wait, but wouldn't Alberta have known that I was with you, here, last night?"

"No, because I wasn't supposed to bring you to the cabin until tonight."

"Oh I see Mr. Rule Breaker," I teased Dimitri some more and then I spoke up again, seriously this time. "Why would Kirova need to see me one a Saturday and no less my _birthday_?"

"Who knows, maybe the Headmistress does have a heart, contrary to your and the whole school's belief, and wants to wish you a happy birthday?" Dimitri said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Ugh…well let's go get this over with so I can come back here and stay with my man all day." I hopped up from the bed, walking straight to the shower, not bothering to put any clothes on because in three seconds I was just going to take them all back off.

I planned to take a quick shower, but it took a longer time as Dimitri jumped in with me and we spent more time having sex for the third time today than actually showering. I left my hair somewhat damp and put on some comfortable yet cute clothes.

A deep silky red halter went on; followed by some dark wash skinny jeans and a leather jacket completed the look. I looked in the mirror and applied some mascara and eye liner, not bothering with eye shadow and some of the lip gloss I still had from Dimitri. I fluffed my hair up once more and walked in the living room, really noticing the cabin for the first time.

It had been drastically changed from the last time we had come here. All of this, I assumed Dimitri had done and I wondered when he had done it. The place was pretty spacious with and open living room and a spacious kitchen. Everything was coated with new furniture and the place looked like we had just bought a house.

"Like it?" Dimitri's voice sounded through the hallway from the bedroom to the room where I now was. He walked out, folding his sleeve while he approached me.

"I love it. But when did you do it?"

"Remember that night I came in late and I found you ransacking the kitchen?" I nodded. "I was here doing some setup with Alberta in preparation for us to live here from now on."

"I see, I see." I grinned at him. I walked to the door and noticed that even all my shoes were here. I laughed and put on my knee high black boots with the one inch skinny heel.

"Are you going to be able to walk in those things Rose?" Dimitri eyed my boots.

"Relax comrade, it's only an inch. And besides, if I fall, you'll be there to catch me."

* * *

"Um comrade? This isn't the way to Kirova's office."

"I know."

"Where are we going?"

"We're just taking a little detour."

We kept walking and walking. My feet were already hurting but I would never tell Dimitri in a million years. Thankfully, the pains and aches from my pregnancy hadn't accompanied the hurt in my feet. Finally we arrived to what looked like a private room for a staff member. I opened my mouth to ask Dimitri what was going on again, but before I could, he opened the door and walked in the room.

"Come one Roza, it's safe, I promise. I just have to stop here to get something for the Headmistress."

I groaned but followed him into the dark room where he didn't even bother to turn on the lights. Caught up in my mind, I soon lost Dimitri and started worrying. Even though we had pretty good eyes for seeing in the dark, I couldn't spot Dimitri no matter how hard I looked. I scanned the room, and found a light switch, hurrying over to it.

I flicked it on.

"Surprise!"

I screamed. And jumped back a hundred feet. Pressing a hand to my heart, I looked up and saw all of my friends and family gathered in a half circle around me, wearing those stupid birthday hats and holding the noisemakers in their hands.

"Happy Birthday Rose!"

I smiled. And cried. Tears of joy of course. Water ran down my face as my lips stretched to each side so hard I thought they were going to fall off.

"You guys nearly gave me a heart attack," I said. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get this party started! Woo!"

I moved onto the makeshift dance floor as the first song came on. I instantly recognized it as one of my favourites and started dancing the night away. All around were my friends of course, but guardians and past teachers had scattered the room. Even Stan was here. One by one, people came up to wish me a happy birthday once more and as the hours went by more and more people started to leave until the stationary group was left back.

As tired as I was, I dropped on the couch, exhausted. Liss joined me shortly. "How are you doing Rose?"

"Tired but better than great." I told Lissa honestly. "Thanks for the party Liss."

She smiled and reached over and grabbed me in a hug. "Anything for you Rose."

"I'll keep that in mind next time I ask you for something." Lissa laughed and I shook my head.

"So what's new with you and Dimitri?" She raised her eyebrow and immediately I knew what she was thinking of.

"It's the best really. Just me and him, off in a secluded cabin…it's always hot and steamy and never quiet," my voice started trailing of sultrily and deep and I waited.

"Ew Rose!"

"Payback my dear. I never liked seeing the pasty ass over there." I pointed to Christian. "At least you weren't in my head today, even if you were, I can't and won't apologize for that…"

"Okay Rose, changing topics, oh here comes Alberta! You talk to her and I'll be back when you've cooled down…" she got up and walked over to somewhere.

I got up to and approached Alberta. "Happy birthday Rose."

"Thanks Alberta, thanks for everything." I really stressed everything, wanting her to know that I appreciated it a lot.

"Your welcome Rose. I thought it would be good for you to have a hideaway of sorts because I know it's not going to get easier in the coming months for you. And plus, if you ever visit the Academy after you graduate, you'll always have a place other than guardian housing.'"

Seeming to catch Alberta off guard, I pulled her into a hug, whispering my thanks to her once more before she told me she had to leave because of her shift. My parents came up to me next.

"Happy birthday kizim." Abe kissed both my cheeks and enveloped me in a bone crushing hug. "My little girl turns 18 today."

"That I do." I said smiling.

"Happy birthday Rose," my mom said. Janine was never one for close contact with each other so I had another pleasant surprise when she put her arm around me. It wasn't a full hug but baby steps had to be taken before huge leaps. I was still pretty happy.

Taps on the microphone, yes, Lissa had gotten a microphone, sounded through the room calling our attention to where she stood on the stage. "Okay everybody, it's time for cake and presents!"

The lights dimmed a bit and everyone started singing happy birthday. It was so sweet, I started to cry. Eddie and Mason brought out the huge cake that was made for me. I laughed when I saw it, my sounds coming out like hiccups. The cake had been shaped to look like a huge doughnut. Chocolate of course. The boys placed the doughnut cake on the table and walked back over to me, picking me up and putting me on their shoulders. I wobbled back and forth but quickly got my balance. The whole time, I couldn't wipe the smile of my face.

The cake was great, and what was even better was the cake that I accidentally smashed into Dimitri's face. In my defence it wasn't my fault. I didn't notice him behind me and when I swung around, my hand that was holding a plate of cake, crashed into Dimitri's bent over face.

I couldn't stop laughing; my stomach was cramping up from my fit. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry but I really am not. You should see your face, this is just so hilarious!" I pulled out my phone from my pocket and held it up, saying, "smile, say cheese!" and snapped the picture of Dimitri's cake face.

But being the person I am, I offered to help him clean it up…which consisted of me just swiping a finger across his cheek then licking it off. Of course that didn't clean it up but I offered to smash cake into his face again later tonight and I'd _clean _it up. Suffice to say, I left a bothered stricken Dimitri in the hallway while I returned to the festivities.

"Time for presents!" Lissa clapped her hands and grabbed my shoulders, pushing me towards the table that was filled with wrapped boxes and gift bags. Lissa and Adrian nominated themselves to be the 'commentators', oohing and aahhing every time I opened a present.

"Okay first present, from Mason and Eddie and it's in a huge box!" Lissa squealed.

I bit my lip excitedly. The box was too tall for me so each boy took one end of the huge ribbon bow on top and pulled. The four sides of the box came tumbling down to reveal a white rocker. In it, sat multiple stuffed animals; Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, the whole bunch.

"Happy birthday Rose," Mason and Eddie said in unison. "We made the rocker for you, so you know, you can rock the twins to sleep and stuff."

"We're also doing your nursery when you guys move into Court," Eddie told me.

All I could do was nod; this was getting too much for me. I held out my arms, and walked to them, hugging them both as tight as I could. "Thank you so much guys!" A kiss on the cheek followed the words, "You know I love you guys' right?" whispered in their ears.

I let go of them and looked to Lissa, giving her the consent to squeal and giggle and what not. "Okay okay, time for the second present, and this one comes from Adrian!"

Adrian got up from where he was sitting and handed me the box that was wrapped in red gift paper. "Here you go lil' dhampir, hope you enjoy."

Ripping open the paper, I saw another layer of paper and looked at Adrian confusingly. He gestured for me to go on and as I did, I was met with another layer of wrapping. "Seriously Adrian? What are we, 3?"

He shrugged and I took off the following thirteen sheets of paper until I reached a plain cardboard box. I searched for the flap and opened it, revealing a bottle of perfume. The same exact one that he had given me in Idaho.

"Oh God Adrian," I laughed. He smiled and said, "Keep going."

I did as he said and found a book of papers. I flipped through it and laughed some more when I found that they were coupons for babysitting services. I lifted them up for everyone see as I had done with the previous present.

"Thanks Adrian." I reached out to give him a hug and had to pull back with a little more strength than I needed to after he didn't want to let go.

"Okay next present," Lissa said bringing us back to the importance of what needed to be done. "Pick a present Rose! Ooh that's ours!"

I looked from her to Christian and then raised my eyebrows, wondering what would be held in it. There were three boxes, each stacked on top of each other from smallest to largest, and held together with a red ribbon. The top present was a small box. I opened it to reveal a wooden rosary with the Dragomir crest on it. I looked at Lissa curiously and saw that she was wearing the biggest smile on her face.

"My great grandmother's guardian wore it, and it's been in the family ever since. It symbolizes the dedication and love that a guardian has towards its charge. It's now yours Rose."

"Oh Liss, I don't know what to say…" I said, fingering the bracelet.

"Wear it proudly Rose."

"I will. Thank you." I hugged Lissa too, feeling her through my mind and I through hers. It was pure love, a different kind but love nonetheless. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do for her.

"Okay next gift. This one's all Christian." She said with a grin.

I eyed him warily as I pulled open the wrapping that encased the rectangular-ish solid. "A cookbook?"

"Well you'll have to learn or else you children will starve," Christian smirked.

"Gee thanks for the encouragement Pyro."

"No problem Hathaway."

"Okay okay you two, now Rose, get to our last present." Lissa said.

I opened the set and found a bunch of nail polish with a mani-pedi set and _lots _makeup. "It's for us to spend more time together when you start progressing more. You know, I was reading up on pregnancy and it said the mood swings are pretty violent so I thought doing something like we used to might keep our clam though the times ahead." Liss explained.

"Thanks Liss, I really appreciate and I am _so _not looking forwards to those but I am looking forwards to what will come because of it."

"Oh, I almost forgot! Chris baked you the cake, he would never admit it but he enjoyed doing something for someone he considers family now." Lissa beamed.

"Lissa!" Christian yelled out. Everyone laughed around the room while I mouthed a thank you in Christian's direction after I finished my laughing fit.

"Well after that short break, time to get back to a pressing matter." Adrian now picked up the commentary from Lissa, who looked a little depressed that she no longer got to do it I patted her shoulder and told her it was okay.

"Next present is from Janine," my mother gave Adrian a look and he coughed, correcting himself to, "guardian Hathaway."

I picked the gift bag off the table and pulled out the tissue paper covering what was inside. When I reached it, I took out a scrapbook of sorts. I opened the cover to reveal a huge amount of pictures that littered the pages. All of me; well some with my mother, and Lissa and my friends, and most surprisingly my father. Of course these pictures were me as a small child, no older than two or three, before I got shipped off to the Academy. I was so young then, no wonder I didn't remember Abe.

As I flipped through the pages, they were filled with fewer pictures as the years went by. Understandably because my mother was not as present in my life as she was in the earlier years. When I reached the end, the last picture in there was one of me…and Dimitri, in the gym. We were both in a fighting stance, getting ready to spar. Underneath the photo, it captioned, _this is where one chapter of your life begins. Grab onto it and never let go. _It was then that I fully comprehended that my mother gave me her full blessing on my choice for life ahead, for Dimitri. And that was one of the best birthday presents I could have ever asked for.

Not caring what my mother thought, I grabbed her and wrapped my arms around her petite body, completely surprising her. I caught her off guard but it only took a few seconds for her to hug me back with an even fiercer intensity. "I love you mom."

"I love you too Rose, even if I haven't been present for most of your life, I've always loved you." She whispered in my ear.

I pulled back and my mom brought her thumb up to my eyes. "You have some smudges right here." She wiped hem off and smiled at me. I hadn't even known I was crying until she told me. Luckily, she erased the black mascara lines from my face before anyone saw, hopefully.

She moved away from me as I continued with the second to last present on the table and Adrian continued with his commentary.

"This one is from Abe; shall we see what it contains?" Adrian pronounced.

I grabbed the small box and opened it, exposing the ruby rose shaped earrings that lay in the center of the jewelry cloth. They were so beautiful. Starting from the center, entwined ruby and silver created the petals of the rose.

"They were made for you on your fifth birthday. But by then, my contact with you had already been severed. Now I give them back to you." Abe started. "I had them made bigger so you can now wear them on your ears."

"Thank you, they're gorgeously stunning…I love them."

I put away the box and turned around to face a smiling Abe who had taken out an envelope from his suit pocket. I took it and opened it, gasping at what I saw.

"I can't take this," I said, trying to give him back the envelope.

He refused, pushing it back in my hands. "Now, my little girl is about to have a family of her own and I won't allow you to not be able to support yourselves. Put it towards a house or keep it for emergencies, but take it Rose. It's a way for me to ensure that my girl is taken care of."

I nodded and slipped the cheque for _a lot _back into the envelope and into my pocket, safeguarding it. We didn't need half a million dollars losing itself. Hugging my dad, I whispered, "thanks dad," into his ear.

"Last present of the evening folks," Adrian said, handing it over to me. I caught Dimitri's eye, who had been quiet for the night and gave him a wink.

"Shall I dare take a guess as to who's this is?"

"Okay Adrian, I think we're just about done with this," I told him, giving him a pointed look.

I opened Dimitri's present. On a bed of red cotton, lay a silver stake. But not just any; this one was special. I held it up to examine it. From the top all the way down to the bottom, a trail of vines with roses was etched onto the cool metal. At the very top, around the handle, engraved were the words, _Roza, I love thee fully, completely and forever._

Nothing stopped me from walking over to where Dimitri stood, and kissing him, full on the lips with no restrictions. In that moment, I didn't care who was in the room. All that mattered was just him and me.

I heard coughing over to the side, and Lissa say "Leave them alone Christian, aren't they the sweetest?"

After that, I broke the kiss, and laid my head on Dimitri's chest as our arms wrapped around each other. "Dimitri, I will also love thee fully completely and forever."

Our moment eventually had to end, and it was pretty soon because I knew everyone was waiting for us, we were not quite under the radar with our PDA. I was met with some surprised faces, some smiling faces and some faces that didn't know what to do, particularly Abe's. I rolled my eyes at that.

"I want to thank everyone for coming, it means a lot to me and for just being here, and for being part of my finally," I smiled, "huge family. I love you all, yes even you Sparky and words can't express how much it means that we're here, celebrating my 18th birthday. Okay all that said and done, I'm quite tired so if y'all would please leave so I can get going to bed…" I trailed off hoping they would get the message.

I heard a snort and no guesses to where that came from. I sent a pointed look in the boys' direction. They were all pigs, I swear. One by one, people started filing out until only Dimitri and I were left in the room.

"Okay comrade, carry me to bed." I said, holding up my arms for him to come pick me up.

"Gladly milaya," he said and my feet were swept out from under me and I closed my eyes. "Had a good birthday Roza?" He whispered in my ear.

"Mmhhmm, the best comrade," I spoke sleepily as I escaped the world of reality for a little while.

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who helped me with this chapter, I really appreciate it! Thanks to, Guest, Dimitri's Secret Lover, Mavelbooks, VA fan (guest), Sadistically Delicious, hiseask17 and DamphiricAngel2014!(Hope I spelt everything right, cause I'm going off memory now. And if I forgot you, tell me and I'll add it in!)  
**

**Ok, Bye for now!  
**


	22. Chapter 22

**Thank you guys for all the reviews! And seriously guys? 100 favourites? Thank you guys so much! You don't know what that means to me, thank you so so so much! I love how you guys are loving this, I seriously thought this story wouldn't get that much attention since the topic so overused. **

**Thank you again! **

Quick author's note before we get started: Hope you guys like and this is only the first part of the two chapters about to come. Enjoy!

_Previously;_

"_I want to thank everyone for coming, it means a lot to me and for just being here, and for being part of my finally," I smiled, "huge family. I love you all, yes even you Sparky and words can't express how much it means that we're here, celebrating my 18__th__ birthday. Okay all that said and done, I'm quite tired so if y'all would please leave so I can get going to bed…" I trailed off hoping they would get the message. _

_I heard a snort and no guesses to where that came from. I sent a pointed look in the boys' direction. They were all pigs, I swear. One by one, people started filing out until only Dimitri and I were left in the room. _

"_Okay comrade, carry me to bed." I said, holding up my arms for him to come pick me up._

"_Gladly milaya," he said and my feet were swept out from under me and I closed my eyes. "Had a good birthday Roza?" He whispered in my ear._

"_Mmhhmm, the best comrade," I spoke sleepily as I escaped the world of reality for a little while. _

"Perfection Roza," Dimitri whispered in my ear as his arms wrapped around my waist. My eyes followed his line of sight to see two small children sitting on the middle of our floor, playing together.

"Well what do you expect? They're half me, they're bound to be perfect." I said.

"They're half mine too."

"Yeah yeah comrade, your half makes them more than perfection." I smiled. With Dimitri's good looks, combined with mine, our children couldn't possibly more beautiful.

"You know, I kinda miss this," Dimitri said.

"Me too, but I've never been so happy to see my toes." Dimitri laughed and laced his fingers through mine, fiddling with the object on my fourth finger. He brought our intertwined hands together and kissed the cool metal.

"I can't wait to see you up there." I'd already begun planning with Lissa the day after Dimitri asked. She was so excited but no one could be more excited than me. Now two years later, I was finally going to walk down the aisle in a couple days.

When I'd given birth in my eighteenth October, Dimitri consented to my wishes, even though it seemed more logical at the time. A couple months ago, marked the point where a 2 would have to be put in front my age and Dimitri was going to get to see me in that white dress that he'd wanted since forever. I turned around, and pressed my lips to Dimitri's, feeling the familiarity. Hearing giggles, made me laugh too against my fiancé's lips.

I spun around to see my daughter smiling her toothy grin and my son covering his eyes. I swooped down and picked them up, holding one child in each arm. I littered both their faces with kisses, all over their cheeks and noses. "Do my babies like that?" I asked, continuing with my assault.

"More mommy!" My daughter demanded while my son hid his face in my neck and weaved his tiny fingers into my hair which was growing back. I had cut it when the twins were about 3 months and wanting to touch and pull everything. Putting my hair up didn't work; they were too curios, especially when I'd go to burp them, they'd always reach up and pull at the dark strands. Dimitri wasn't too happy with my decision. After I came home for the salon with Lissa, Dimitri looked at me dumbfounded, as if I were a different person. Reasoning with him for a whole night and day got me off the 'hook'.

Suddenly I stopped what I was doing, it was like a force had overtaken my body. I felt my arms slowly drop and remembered to hold onto my children with everything left in me before I dropped them. I was too weak.

I heard Dimitri yell, "Roza!" and he caught the twins as I landed on the wood floor, my body ringing out with pain and fear and confusion. I gasped, the wind, being knocked out of me…and the world going black. Completely obscure, I couldn't see anything; the world was one shade of ebony. I called out, but no one answered. I ran but I didn't know where I was going, I tried seeing but I couldn't.

Then out from nowhere, a shining light pierced the darkness and then it was gone. Rapid breaths and hoarse whispers circled all around, enveloping me like a blanket of insecurity. Voices came and went; but two stuck with me, calling out, crying for help.

"Momma, they're coming," my daughter's voice drifted through me, "Mommy help me!" Looking at her face sent me falling to my knees.

"Momma they want us." I whipped around, faster than a strike of lightning. Tears trekked down my face, seeing me son. I reached out to him, trying to grab him, to hold him. But he vanished, slipping through my fingertips. "Mommy they're coming for us," he whispered.

"Mommy they won't stop." Her voice echoed. "Mommy they're coming," his voice rang.

"Please tell me who babies," I pleaded. "I won't let them get to you. Just tell me who."

"Momma they're scaring me," she called out, frightened.

"Momma help," he said, asking like no one would comply.

"Tell me who, please," I sobbed. I was on my knees, helpless. And that was the worst feeling ever. I only wanted to protect them.

"Momma they're coming," she said.

"Who baby, whose coming?"

"The man with the yellow hair. The one with the mean scary eyes." She told me.

"They're coming," I turned to my boy. "Sweetie please, tell me who."

"He's bringing friends. They're coming," he looked at me, forlorn. His eyes, the sadness mirroring his sister's, and fear shone through both their beautiful chocolate eyes.

"They're coming momma and they want us. They won't stop at anything, they're coming momma and they want us." With every word, my children took a step backwards, and with each step, the darkness took a little more until they faded away, becoming one with the shadowy dusk.

"No! NO!" I screamed. I screamed until my throat was hoarse and I was gasping for breath. "No, no, no…give me back my babies; please give them back to me."

I fell on the floor, sobbing and crying hysterically. "Please, please give them back to me. I need to know…my babies…please give them back…"

"NO get your hands off me, please," like I yelled, hands were shaking my shoulders, but it felt like they were pulling me down, making me suffocate.

"Please let me go," I begged.

"Rose!" I opened my eyes at the sound of my name and whipped my head in the direction it came from.

It was like a static-y image from one of those old time televisions. The image was barely put together, like the pixels were just floating around in the spot where they were generally supposed to be, creating this blurry image that was barely conceivable. But the messy hair and green eyes gave it away. The radiated through the darkness and gave me some hope.

"Adrian!" I yelled out, pushing myself up and running towards him.

I launched myself in his arms. "What's going on?"

"I don't know Rose, this is your dream."

"What?" I asked, confused. As far as I knew, this was reality.

"You're not waking up Rose. You're thrashing and screaming and yelling in bed. Lissa's worried, and Dimitri's just about to go out of his mind. He's trying to restrain you from hurting anyone, but that only resulted in him getting a black eye from you."

"What? Why can't I wake up then Adrian? If you really say this is a dream, why am I not waking up?"

"I don't know Rose but I do know it's up to you. There's some kind of magic holding you in this, but you need to fight through it Rose. I need you too, everyone one does. Lissa needs you, Dimitri needs you, and they need you," he said, placing his hand on my stomach.

"I can't hold on much longer Rose, whatever this magic is, it's stronger than mine. Remember Rose, it's on you. We'll all be waiting when you cross. You can do it Rose," Adrian smiled down on me and kissed my forehead.

And just like that, the hands of the darkness wrapped around him and pulled him into their grip. The last thing I saw was his face, telling me I could do it.

Now I just had to.

**A/N- Okay guys! There it is. Sorry it's so short but I wanted to put something out there for you guys this week because I'm not sure I'll have any time next week to update and I knew if this didn't get posted now, you wouldn't have a chapter to read for the next two weeks.**

**Hope you guys liked it! Review and tell me!**


	23. Chapter 23

**I haven't done a disclaimer in a while I think so here goes: **I don't own any VA material used, all over it belongs to the wonderfully creative Richelle Mead! **Enjoy!**

_Previously;_

_It was like a static-y image from one of those old time televisions. The image was barely put together, like the pixels were just floating around in the spot where they were generally supposed to be, creating this blurry image that was barely conceivable. But the messy hair and green eyes gave it away. The radiated through the darkness and gave me some hope. _

"_Adrian!" I yelled out, pushing myself up and running towards him. _

_I launched myself in his arms. "What's going on?"_

"_I don't know Rose, this is your dream."_

"_What?" I asked, confused. As far as I knew, this was reality. _

"_You're not waking up Rose. You're thrashing and screaming and yelling in bed. Lissa's worried, and Dimitri's just about to go out of his mind. He's trying to restrain you from hurting anyone, but that only resulted in him getting a black eye from you."_

"_What? Why can't I wake up then Adrian? If you really say this is a dream, why am I not waking up?" _

"_I don't know Rose but I don't know it's up to you. There's some kind of magic holding you in this, but you need to fight through it Rose. I need you too, everyone one does. Lissa needs you, Dimitri needs you, and they need you," he said, placing his hand on my stomach. _

"_I can't hold on much longer Rose, whatever this magic is, it's stronger than mine. Remember Rose, it's on you. We'll all be waiting when you cross. You can do it Rose," Adrian smiled down on me and kissed my forehead. _

_And just like that, the hands of the darkness wrapped around him and pulled him into their grip. The last thing I saw was his face, telling me I could do it. _

_Now I just had to. _

**DPOV**

I felt the mattress moving and knew that Rose was probably having a restless night. The covers had been kicked off and even though it was freezing, Rose had taken off her clothes and was now sleeping in her underwear. I knew this behaviour. I didn't even try to hold her because it meant that she was hot and uncomfortable and any kind of contact would result in bruising. So I stayed on my side of the bed, not even touching her, just trying to get some sleep.

This had happened a couple nights ago in my guardian issued room. I felt Rose restlessly moving and fidgeting, so I tried to hold her but she kicked me in the side and pushed me off the bed. In the end, I took out a couple blankets and made a bed on the ground. An hour later, she had calmed down and was sleeping soundly. The morning after when Rose woke up before me, she was looking at me curiously and when I tried to explain to her why I was there, she didn't remember a thing from the night before.

Now I lay awake, staring at the ceiling, waiting for Rose to stop her fit. Three hours later, she was still going, tossing with an even higher intensity. And that was when she screamed out. I shot up and flicked on the lamp, then turning over to Rose. Sweat was dripping down her face and her hair was plastered to her skin.

I cursed myself for not checking on her earlier. Who knows how long she's been like this? "You idiot," I said to myself, crawling over to Rose, slightly shaking her, trying to wake her up. "Roza, please, wake up milaya."

Her face contorted and she screamed, "No, get your hands off me!"

"Roza, please."

"Please get your hands off me, please," she was crying and thrashing.

"Okay Roza," I said, removing my hands from her shoulders. With the way that Rose was kicking her legs, there was no doubt that her legs would get more entangled than free. So I stripped the bed of all it blankets so Rose wouldn't get herself more caught.

I kneeled at her side, stroking her face ever so gently; not wanting to cause her more strife than she already was going through. I tucked the long, dark strands behind her ear, hoping the action would calm her down. "No, no...Please bring them back...please," she whispered, moaning.

"Roza, it's okay, it's not real," I kept repeating that to her, maybe it would help.

"No!" She screamed. It was a blood curdling, piercing scream that left my heart pounding with fear.

"Roza, can you hear me?" I grabbed the sides of her face, forcing her eyes on mine even though she couldn't see me. Her eyes were glossed over, pupils dilated. I didn't know what else to do. This wasn't something that I could take to the clinic.

I breathed in and out; I couldn't help Rose if I panicked myself. I grabbed the phone on the side table beside Rose and searched through her contacts, pressing the green button when I got to who I needed.

"C'mon Janine, pick up," I said, trying a second time when I got her voicemail on the first try. On the sixth ring, a groggy voice came over the phone.

"Who the hell is this?" Like mother like daughter, it figured.

"Janine? It's Dimitri, we have an emergency."

"What's going on?"

"It's Rose, she's caught in some kind of dream and she's not waking up."

"So? It's the night and she needs to sleep."

"With all due respect Guardian Hathaway, you need to come now. Your daughter is screaming and thrashing and crying and not waking up. So forgive me if I don't seem to care that Rose needs to sleep now."

I heard her inhale sharply, "I'm on my way with Abe." She hung up the phone and I made my next call.

"Rose?"

"Princess," I said, "sorry for the wake up call but something is wrong with Rose."

"I'm there in a few." She hung up too and I didn't think there was anyone else. If there was, Lissa would know who to bring. True to their word, Janine and Abe were beating down the door shortly after I'd finished trying to get Rose somewhat decent. I'd only managed the put on a tank top on and she punched me in the eye.

"She's in the bedroom," I said while holding open the door for Lissa who was running just a few paces behind Rose's parents followed by Christian.

"Oh Rose," Lissa gasped and covered her mouth, the tears flowing down her cheeks. "What's wrong with her?"

Before I could answer Rose screamed out again, this time, "No! Don't take them away! Give my babies back to me! Please I need my babies."

My heart shattered into pieces and I could've fallen to my knees. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lissa move towards Rose and I grabbed her around the waist, pulling her away from the bed. "Rose is acting out at any form of contact, I don't need you to get hurt Princess."

"Let go of me Dimitri," she ordered. "Let go."

I did and she turned to me. "Did she give you that?" She asked, pointed to my eye. I nodded and she placed her hand on my cheek and I knew she was healing it.

"That's alright Princess, you don't need to waste your magic on me."

"Dimitri Belikov, what have I told you? Call me Lissa and I will heal who I want to heal." I nodded.

"Thank you Lissa."

"She's dreaming then?" I heard Christian say.

"I think so."

"Then why don't we get Adrian to try and contact her? He can dreamwalk right Lissa?" She nodded.

A few minutes later, Adrian lay on our sofa in the bedroom, trying to get to Rose. What seemed like forever passed as everyone was on their toes, anxious for Adrian to come back. My sight never left the Ivashkov lord so I saw when slowly opened his eyes.

"Well?" I asked.

"She caught in some kind of magic, she's bound."

"And? What does that mean?"

"Well, it's trapping her. Keeping her in this trance and only she can control it. I can try to do something to help her but I doubt it'll work; this magic is stronger than mine. It's up to Rose now."

**RPOV**

Closing my eyes, I focused all my energy into getting out of here. Adrian said some kind of magic was holding me here so I directed myself to the source, to see if I could cut it off and get out of here. It felt very similar to when I went into Lissa's mind so I replicated that feeling, searching for something that would speed up my departure.

I blocked out all the voices that still roamed around me, occasionally causing goosebumps to rise on my skin. My mind exploded with golden sparks, the same colour that identifies a spirit user. A splitting shock of pain shot through my brain that left me grasping my left eye. Like rapid fire, these short bursts came but I pushed through, finally coming to something that looked like a rope, edges slightly fraying.

I didn't take that as a good sign. Mentally I reached, trying to grasp it and almost falling down on my knees when it was right out of my grip...just like my children were. But I was determined not to let it get away from me, because each second I spent on the floor, was a few more inches that slipped away from me. I stretched and stretched until I was pretty sure I popped my shoulder out.

I screamed and grunted, but told myself that I wouldn't give up, I would never give up. I remembered Lissa, Christian, Mason and Eddie. I remembered my mother and new found father, and felt my body find the strength that allowed me to reach further. I remembered Dimitri and his love, and how he would tell me to lean on him and use his strength if he were here with me. I imagined he was at my side, his hand resting on my shoulder telling me that I could do this, saying he believed in me.

"I believe." I whispered. "I believe in myself," a little louder. I felt something; something like wispy tendrils flowing throughout me fueled with a different kind of magic, almost like a stronger one. "I can do this," I said, my arms reaching at impossible lengths, fingertips wriggling to grasp the ends.

I dug further into me and the fire grew bigger when I thought of the twins. From the moment I first found out that I was pregnant, these babies became my first priority and I loved them with everything I had in me. There really is no way to describe a mother's love; all that I knew was that I lit up and tears of happiness and joy came to my eyes whenever I thought about them, whenever I spoke about them and whenever I saw them.

When I centered myself with the love and support I was getting at home as Adrian had said, I became immune to everything else that was going on around me. Still reaching for the rope, I pushed my body to its limits with the faces of friends and family in my head. Closer and closer I got to the frazzled end; I could feel the roughness from the fraying edges, the coarse material brushing against the pads of my fingers.

"C'mon Rose, you can do it," I pep talked myself. "You believe in yourself. Just think of Lissa and Dimitri. Think of your twins. Think of everyone waiting back at home for you. You can do it, god dammit, you are Rose fucking Hathaway and you will grab that rope if it's the last fucking thing you do!" I inhaled then exhaled, yelling and screaming, my hair billowing behind me, then reaching and grabbing that rope. The moment I touched it, light illuminated the darkness from the point of contact.

Sharp lines of gold streaked the black, slowly turning into more and more colours that transformed into images. They blended together, splashing and painting a scene on this blank canvas. Slowly, before me, I saw myself thrashing and kicking on the bed. Dimitri was on top of me, straddling my legs and his hands were holding down my arms. He looked battered and beaten and it tore me up to actually see myself do that to him. My eyes were bloodshot, opened and wide and it looked like I had been possessed, which I technically had been.

I could see and hear Dimitri whispering things to me, trying to calm me down but I couldn't understand a thing as it was all in Russian. But I felt my body slightly calm down. It was like in those movies where the lead is in a coma and as a ghost they're seeing everything. That was what was happening to me.

Lissa and Adrian each held one of my hands, and they looked out of it but I knew that they were working spirit and from what I saw, it was pretty serious because they both looked drained.

I had escaped from that hellhole I now needed to come out of this one way mirror. I figured that all I needed to do was lie on top of my body and have my "soul" reattach itself. I moved over and crawled on me, I didn't feel any different. Well, I sorta felt a renewed hope seeing the love of my life looking down on me from where I lay. Even though he couldn't feel it, I reached up and brushed back a strand of his hair that fell in his face. I smiled and kissed my fingertips then pressed it to his cheek, holding my hand there, feeling his stubble that he hadn't yet shaved off. "I'll be with you soon, I promise." I whispered in his ear before I got up and using this new magic that course through my body, I re-energized the two Moroi that were sitting beside me.

"Ok Rose, time to do this," I said rubbing my hands together. "Let's get back to reality."

"Time to calm yourself down." I thought that maybe if I focused on my body, I could calm it down and I could get out of here. I decided to start on my head, with the way it was moving, my neck should've been snapped by now. Maybe if I cleared my mind, my body would stop creating this images that was reacting to.

In this moment, I never thanked Dimitri more for making do meditation with him a couple of mornings ago. I closed my eyes and created a blank space. A blanket of white washed throughout my mind and purified it, ridding it of all this dark magic. My head stopped twisting; it was still and I was breathing evenly. My limbs had also stopped moving and I was limp, my body looking worn out and beaten up.

"I think she stopped," I heard my mother say. "Dimitri?"

I saw him nod and get up slowly, cautiously as if he were ready to jump back on me if I started a fit again. But there was no worry there, I think I was finished. Up here, I didn't feel any black mojo running through me. One last time, I floated down and tried lying on my body, hoping to connect it once again. My body automatically sought out my spirit self, trapping it inside. Likewise, my spirit self, sought out my physical being, and drifted inside it, like it knew it was home.

**DPOV**

I walked into the living room, following everyone else. Since Rose had calmed down, everyone thought that now she was just sleeping it off. I planned to check on her in 10 minutes. I didn't want her waking up and screaming again because she didn't recognize any of us or if no one was there.

Detouring, I made my way to the kitchen ready to prepare some tea for everyone else. But something told me to go back; something told me I had to check on Rose now. I dropped what I was doing and raced to the bedroom, flinging open the door.

Her body was still, but her eyes were open, focused on a spot on the ceiling. I made my way to her, steadily, not wanting to destroy the state of fragility she was in now. As I got closer, I saw her eyes, they were red and puffy...and tears were trailing down her cheeks. I got to the side on the bed and kneeled beside her, stroking her hair gently. She didn't even react to my touch; it was like she was completely oblivious to everything that was going on around her.

"Roza?"

**So quick chapter! I hope that sort of satisfies everyone though I know some things are still blurry and it's supposed to be that way. Everything will be revealed in due time **** I hope you enjoyed this chapter because some parts were really hard to write, so please review and tell me what you liked, maybe loved? **

**Sarah  
**


	24. Chapter 24

**Thanks for all your reviews! And there are a lot of POV switches in this chapter so it might seem a bit confusing. Enjoy!**

_Previously;_

_Detouring, I made my way to the kitchen ready to prepare some tea for everyone else. But something told me to go back; something told me I had to check on Rose now. I dropped what I was doing and raced to the bedroom, flinging open the door. _

_Her body was still, but her eyes were open, focused on a spot on the ceiling. I made my way to her, steadily, not wanting to destroy the state of fragility she was in now. As I got closer, I saw her eyes, they were red and puffy...and tears were trailing down her cheeks. I got to the side on the bed and kneeled beside her, stroking her hair gently. She didn't even react to my touch; it was like she was completely oblivious to everything that was going on around her. _

_"Roza?"_

**DPOV**

"They're gone," she whispered. "They're gone. I lost them…"

"Roza?"

"I couldn't protect them, I was too weak. I couldn't grasp them, they're gone," she said feebly. The tears were now flowing free and hard down her cheeks and the pillow was becoming soggy. Her hair was clinging to her face and it stuck everywhere but she didn't even move a muscle, she didn't try to wipe her eyes or move the dark strands.

"Roza," I picked her body up and sat on the bed, taking her spot. I placed her on my lap and I wrapped my arms around her, protecting her. She curled into me, burying her face in my chest and hooking her arms around my neck, holding tight.

While she sobbed, I stroked her hair soothingly, hoping it would calm her down a bit for her to tell me what was going on.

"Ssh, it's okay Roz," I said. "You're not there anymore."

"B-b-but," she stuttered.

"But what Roza?"

"I-I-I," she stopped, coughing and sobbing, making sputtering noises.

""Deep breaths, in and out, in and out," I coaxed and kept repeating.

Rose opened her mouth, ready to talk again. "They're gone…"

"Who's gone?" I asked.

"They just floated off," she said somewhat deliriously. "They floated off and faded into the darkness. They were there one minute then poof! the next they're gone. Warning me about something and now they're lost…" Rose trailed off and she raised her head. She didn't look like she was here; her eyes were sort of glossed over, like she was stuck in some distant memory.

Her hand slowly moved up and she wrapped a piece of her hair around her finger, bringing it up to her face and inspecting it very closely. "This…this was their hair, I tried to reach them, but I couldn't…I couldn't reach them…and now they're gone forever."

I heard a gurgling noise. It came from Rose. She was trying to breathe, taking erratic breaths but more than anything she was suffocating herself from the inside. She sputtered and sobbed, choking on her own air. I gently patted her back, helping her to breathe.

"Roza," I could feel my own tears dripping down my cheeks as I looked at her haunted face. Her mouth was open and she was gasping, holding her throat. "Roza please, breathe." I knew that wouldn't help her but I had to say it, to help myself.

I grabbed her face, and held the nape of her neck, forcing her to stay upright, instead of bending her neck back, slowing her oxygen intake. "Janine! Princess!" I yelled.

Not a second later did they come barging through the door. Janine rushed into the room followed by Lissa but both of them stopped dead in their tracks when they saw Rose. Lissa gasped and covered her mouth and her eyes wide, like she was slapped.

I looked at her, helplessness written on my face, wondering if she could do anything. But Lissa was too caught up in her own surprise that she melted in Christian's arms, sobbing quietly. I looked at Janine for help then looked away when I saw her own distraught. She closed herself off from everybody and was looking at Rose distantly, like she didn't know what to do.

I wanted to cuss and knock everybody over the head. This was something bigger than their own shock. Yes, we all knew how Rose was. We all knew she was dying by suffocation; it was only a matter of time. It was only a matter of time before she needed mouth to mouth resuscitation and I wasn't going to wait that long. Something had to be done and now.

**Lissa's POV**

I literally became stupefied the minute I saw her in Dimitri's arms. I almost fell down to my knees but if weren't for Christian I wouldn't be held up. My limbs and my whole body felt loose, like it wasn't really there, like jelly. "I can't," I whispered in Christian's neck. "I just can't." It was too much to take.

"Ssh it's okay," his arms wrapped around my waist and I cried for Rose and Dimitri.

Seeing Rose like that, something just broke inside me. Seeing her vulnerability, the haunted look in her eyes. She was supposed to be the one who never broke but looking at her now, I know something had broken inside and it was not repairable. She was supposed to be the one who never even cracked her shell because that's just who she was. The one who was centered and kept everyone else that way.

"So that's it?" I heard him whisper the words, barely audible. I turned around to look at Dimitri.

I never thought I would see him let out any kind of emotion, let alone cry. Obviously he did have, but Dimitri wasn't the expressive type, he kept to himself and his face never dropped that one expression he always held.

But now, everything changed. Everyone let loose, even Rose's mother, who like Dimitri, never did reveal what she was feeling. Now, it was bared to the world as she too let the droplets track down her cheeks. Her brown eyes mirrored Dimitri's, but the pain and the sorrow reflected in Dimitri's tenfold though.

I wish I could do something, so badly. But I was like Janine, we were both in stuck in shock of what was happening right before our eyes. I couldn't react and I hated myself for it. What kind of friend was I? Let along someone who was supposed to be Rose's _best _friend. I didn't even deserve to call myself that.

My head whipped itself over to the right, after hearing something smashed. I looked over to Adrian, who had this sort of mad look in his eye and blood all over his hand. That's when I noticed the flower vase on the floor.

Everyone looked at him, his emerald eyes filled with malice and hatred. At all of us.

"How can you all just stand there and stare at her caught up in your own fucking grief?! Yes we're all caught up in own grief, we're all so self-absorbed. You know why? Do any of you know fucking why?" His voice rose and his screams rang throughout the cabin, making every person and the walls tremble. "_Do you?"_

He looked at each of us individually, staring us down, his nose flared, face red and eyes aglow. "Because no one, no fucking person, is doing anything!" Adrian yelled.

"Look at him," he said, pointing at Dimitri. "Look at how this man is begging anyone to do something, to save the woman in his arms because he's knows he's tried everything and he refuses to let her die at the cause of herself! You all say you love Rose but what are you doing right now? Look at him!" Adrian was breathing heavily.

I broke down, he was right. I hastily moved to wipe the tears that were obstructing my view. The way Adrian yelled at us, what he said, was a huge wake up slap and it stung. It burned and the turmoil inside me started churning. Rose didn't deserve this, she deserved so much more than what life rewarded her and with me standing her, she deserved to guard someone better than a stuck up, selfish Moroi.

"Fuck," he said, walking over and standing behind Rose. He said some things to Dimitri that I didn't hear and Dimitri reluctantly gave Rose to Adrian.

He lit up like a fire, the gold bursting and covering his aura. Adrian looked into Rose's eyes and he focused on her, like there was nothing else in the world but them and the space between them. I saw Adrian's aura, and then moved onto Rose's. Her's was black, like usual but it was tinged with dark purple around the edges, which I wonder what that meant. But what really surprised me the most was the middle of her aura, or should I say the two smaller ones, concentrated where two new lives grew. They were coated in pink and yellow, love and happiness but what threw me off the most was most of it was full on gold, matching Adrian's and my aura to a tee.

It was like all three of them were connecting with each other, entwining into each other. They braided themselves together, until it almost looked like the braid or kind of tie a rope would have. It was very thin and it wasn't going to last longer by the looks of it.

I zoomed out of spirit mode to look at what was happening in the real world. Miraculously, Rose had stopped thrashing and now she was just limp, being held up by Dimitri and her hands were being grasped between Adrian's. _Wait, I thought Adrian was holding her?_

That's when I noticed that Adrian had sweat dripping down his face and his hair was plastered to his skin. He looked like he was going to pass out and I could only guess it was from the enormous amount of spirit he was using. Without really knowing what I was doing, I found myself walking over to the trio and joining hands with Adrian and Rose. I didn't know how to help; I didn't know what I was doing. I'm pretty sure Adrian didn't either, but what I was doing felt right.

I felt that warm and happy feeling that Rose often described to be when I used spirit. I placed my hands over Adrian's, lending my strength to him, passing on what I had. As soon as I released my magic, it was drawn to him, drawn to between us where I now realized was where the center was, the rope that was holding Rose to us.

**Christian's POV**

It was amazing, well aside from the fact that Rose was being kept alive by a thread. The magic, it radiated from them and we all could see it. Around the three of them, it glowed gold and I saw the magic. The whole room radiated with it, leaving everyone amazed.

The room became warm, and everything seemed like it would be right. I saw the magic glide over Rose, like it was a living being. It enveloped her, wrapping its arms around her body, like a promise that everything would be alright.

I was in a dazed state, and my guess was that the magic was making me drowsy, along with everyone else in the room, except Rose, Lissa and Adrian, who seemed to be immune to it. I slumped to the floor, as did Janine and Abe… and Dimitri. I struggled to keep my eyes open against the spell that was working its way through my body.

Then, everything happened like it did in Beauty and the Beast, when Belle kisses the Beast and he floats up in the air. The same thing happened to Rose. Out of Dimitri's arms she floated, and hovered in the air, her limbs stretched out and her body in a star formation. Then she was blocked from my vision, a gold cloud obscuring her and trapping her body. It shimmered and sparkled and I couldn't even fathom what was going on.

The gold cloud started expanding, growing larger. I brought my arm up to shield my eyes as a shock of blinding light permeated the room. Slowly, I lowered my arm, finally putting in down until I was sure it was gone.

I looked around the room. Everyone else was still collapsed on the floor, sleeping soundly as if nothing had happened and it'd just been a very long night. Abe and Janine were over in the corner, against the wall, they're eyes closed. Adrian was sprawled out on the floor, Lissa was curled up in a ball, close to him, and Dimitri was leaning against the bed frame, all sleeping soundly. I wondered why I wasn't…

I moved up and saw Rose; she was looking at me with a smile written on her lips, and tears of joy running from her eyes. I ran over to her, and pulled her into a hug, relieved and glad to see her.

"Hey Pyro," she said like nothing had been wrong.

"Oh God Rose," I squeezed her tighter, wondering if this was all dream. "Don't ever do that again, you scared the shit out of me." I said.

She laughed and pulled away, "never thought I'd see the day when you actually admitted that you care about me out loud."

"Ha ha, very funny," I rolled my eyes, both of us going back to the sarcastic nature that we both were.

"Well, I guess we should wake up the rest, we have some pretty serious things to talk about," she said.

**DPOV**

Someone was shaking my shoulders, trying to get me up. I hadn't known why or how I'd fallen asleep; the last thing I remembered was holding Rose and breathing in something sweet smelling, feeling drowsy soon after.

A soft voice, a familiar voice, was cooing me out of the coma that I resided in. It was calling to me, and I wanted to follow it, because the voice promised good things waited at the end for me. It told me to wake up, and kept shaking my shoulders.

I slowly opened my eyes, rubbing the sleep out of them to see the blurry figure that stood in front of me.

"C'mon sleepy head, time to get up," she said. Her hands moved across my shoulders, resting on my back and a comfortable weight settled in between my crossed legs.

I breathed in deeply, clearing my senses and blinked a few times, focusing my vision. Her smile, I thought I'd never see it again. Her eyes, I thought I'd never gaze into them again, her hair that I'd thought I'd never get to run my fingers through one last time.

"You're not real," I whispered. "You're a dream."

"I'm really here," she said.

"No, my mind is playing tricks on me," I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

"I'm as real as it can get Dimitri."

"Prove it," I said. She looked at me with a sparkle in her eyes and a grin on her mouth. Then her lips were pressed to mine. They were soft and sweet, just the way I'd remembered them. The kiss was everything at once, slow and passionate and fast and wild. A kiss shared between two people who thought they'd lost each other forever.

She pulled back way too soon for my liking and rested her forehead on mine, catching her breath. I was breathing pretty heavily too. I reached up and twirled a strand of her dark hair through my finger, cradling her head with my other hand.

"I love you," I said.

**RPOV**

"And I love you." I whispered back after she pulled back from another kiss he engulfed me in, neither of us seeming to get enough of the other.

I hugged him, still not wrapping it around my mind that I could've lost him…I gasped and my hands went down and pulled my shirt up.

I breathed out when I saw the bump, and I caressed it, reassured of the fact that my babies were safe and protected, and still here with me. Dimitri's fingers came up to my face and wiped away the tears that I didn't know had fallen.

"Why the tears, milaya?" He asked. I shook my head, not being able to talk right now. He seemed to be able to get this and held me close, waiting.

I finally got a grip on myself and my tears slowed and they eventually stopped. I looked up at Dimitri, telling him that I was alright. I stood up and he followed me suite. I grabbed his hand, not wanting to let any piece of him go yet.

I cleared my throat, loudly, to get everyone's attention. Heads turned my way and before I knew it, I was overcome with hugs and kisses.

"Oh my god Rose," Lissa cried into my shoulder. I wrapped my arms around her, and stroked her hair, calming her down. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"It's okay, I'm here now, and that's all that matters. And you're not a selfish Moroi princess. I don't deserve you, you're right, because you deserve so much better than me but I'm over the moon that you do have me. And that, I wouldn't trade up for anything." She looked visibly surprised, and she wondered how I knew about those things but I just smiled and looked at her knowingly. I kissed her forehead and hugged her once more but she never let go of me, the same way Dimitri still held onto me. So with Lissa holding one hand, and Dimitri the other, I awkwardly hugged everyone.

"Thank you so much Adrian," I said.

"No problem little dhampir," he said somewhat exhausted.

"I saw what you did, with Lissa. I also saw you yelling to everyone," I raised my eyebrows at that. "And I want to thank you for that too, or else I wouldn't be here. I love you, you spoiled brat." I hugged him and made sure he knew it.

"Okay, if everyone would move into the living room, I'd gladly appreciate it," I trailed off.

* * *

"So you're saying that some magical force was keeping you trapped there?" My mom asked.

"Yes, and I think I know what, or _who _was doing it. I think it was the twins." Most people in the room looked at me like I was crazy.

"I think they induced me into that so they could warn me about something, but I don't think they meant for it to go that far. It started out as a dream. Dimitri and I were sitting on the couch, talking and looking down at the children that sat on the carpet playing with their toys. It was the twins. I went to go pick them up and I was pulled into this sort of dark, dim and cold, place where I couldn't see anything. As I was trapped there, voices kept, I don't know, floating around me, I guess. It was. I couldn't see anything. Then two little kids, in a spirit like, ghost form came up to me. They were very pale and washed out, almost blending in with the darkness. It was the twins, and they were about two, exactly the way I'd seen them, on the floor playing.

They were telling me something, warning me about something. They kept repeating it over and over again but it didn't make sense. They kept saying that 'they're coming for us,' 'they want us' and 'they won't stop at anything'. They were scared, and I tried to reach out to them, but I couldn't. They kept slipping from my grasp, especially when I ran to them and kept asking them who was coming.

I never got an answer, but as they faded into the darkness, my boy said something about a man with yellow hair. And then Adrian came to me, as I was thrashing and kicking and crying."

I let Adrian pick up this part of the story for me because retelling that caused a whole bunch of emotions to come back that I'd had when I'd actually been experiencing it in the other dimension.

"It was like she was trapped in some kind of magic. It was different from mine but also the same. And it was stronger," Adrian began. "Only Rose could've gotten out of it, it was holding her there, keeping her trapped. All I know is that I couldn't hold on much longer and then I left."

"So," I started again, "I got down to business and told myself that I would get out of there if it was the last thing I did. I dug deep into myself and saw a rope, and grabbed onto it for dear life, pulling myself in. to where I didn't know. It brought me to some kind of different place, one where I could see what was happening. I saw myself thrashing, and Dimitri pinning me down. I saw Lissa's and Adrian's hands grasping mine, trying to help me but it wasn't working.

It did drain you of everything and do you guys remember this surge of energy that went though you?" I looked at the two green eyed Moroi. They both nodded.

"That was me, I had some sort of magic running through me also and I thought I might try it, but now I don't feel anything. Maybe it was just a spur of the moment thing…yeah then everything was sort of like a blur and I woke up and saw Christian's face."

"Wait, so you don't remember you suffocating?" Abe asked.

"I don't remember it as in the feeling per say but I do know that I saw it, and everything else that happened."

"So you saw the magic that Liss and Adrian pulled off?" Asked Christian. I nodded.

"Wait, wait, holdup," all eyes turned to Lissa, who had her head cocked to the side, caught in thought. "Rose, you said something about a rope being your way out?"

"Yeah why?"

"It all makes sense now! When Adrian was using magic to try and bring you back after he finished yelling at us, I reached out and saw his aura, and yours, but not actually yours. The two auras' that belong to the twins. Was the rope gold?"

"Yes it was," I said, confused.

"The twins' auras' were coated in gold, and so is Adrian's, indicating spirit. It was like they had magic too. All three of the auras wrapped around each other, creating a rope and when I joined in, it finished it off and I felt it working, like a tug. That was you; we made the rope for you to pull out of."

"Oh my god Lissa, that's what happened then," I said, finally getting it straighten out. I finally understood what was going on. "It all makes sense now."

"No it doesn't," I heard Dimitri say. Up until now, he'd been quiet, analyzing what took place. "Well it does, how you came back to us but why did you go there in the first place?"

"I told you," I said, turning back to look at him, "it was the twins. They somehow pulled me in to…oh my god, they, they were warning me. They pulled me in to tell me someone is after them…

No, it can't be happening. Dimitri, what's going on?"

"I don't know Roza, but I promise you, I swear to you that I will _never, _never let anyone or anything harm our children."

I nodded, it was still all surreal. "Rose, I need you to tell me again, what the twins said."

"They said, something about them being taken. They wouldn't stop until they've got the twins. When I asked the twins who 'they' were, they just said the man with the blond hair. They said it like it was some kind of prophecy, a destiny of sorts. Dimitri, I don't want to lose my children," I cried.

I buried my face in his chest and cried. I didn't want to lose them; I couldn't stand to lose them. They were my everything.

"Wait, I remember something," I heard Christian, and I raised my head to look at him. "That attack we had a few weeks ago, there was a Strigoi, with blond hair. He was going on about how he and his friends were going to get the twins and how they were going to use them to change the world for the better.

He said the twins, they were the key. And he also said his leader would take them…and they won't stop until the Strigoi have the twins."

The colour drained from my face; this was so not happening…

**A/N- Ok this is what you've all been waiting for and it should clear everything up. I hope y'all enjoyed it, it took forever to write. Tell me what you thought in a review on your way out **

**See you guys next time!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey guys! I'm back! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, my Christmas present to all of you guys! So a quick disclaimer, Richelle mead owns all VA content used and I only own the plot. **

**Happy Reading!**

_Previously;_

"_I told you," I said, turning back to look at him, "it was the twins. They somehow pulled me in to…oh my god, they, they were warning me. They pulled me in to tell me someone is after them…_

_No, it can't be happening. Dimitri, what's going on?"_

"_I don't know Roza, but I promise you, I swear to you that I will never, never let anyone or anything harm our children."_

_I nodded, it was still all surreal. "Rose, I need you to tell me again, what the twins said."_

"_They said, something about them being taken. They wouldn't stop until they've got the twins. When I asked the twins who 'they' were, they just said the man with the blond hair. They said it like it was some kind of prophecy, a destiny of sorts. Dimitri, I don't want to lose my children," I cried. _

_I buried my face in his chest and cried. I didn't want to lose them; I couldn't stand to lose them. They were my everything. _

"_Wait, I remember something," I heard Christian, and I raised my head to look at him. "That attack we had a few weeks ago, there was a Strigoi, with blond hair. He was going on about how he and his friends were going to get the twins and how they were going to use them to change the world for the better. _

_He said the twins, they were the key. And he also said his leader would take them…and they won't stop until the Strigoi have the twins."_

_My face drained of its entire colour; this was so not happening…_

It's been six weeks and there's been no clue as to what's going to happen in the coming months. I've spent countless hours poring over millions of fifty pound books and things were still clear as mud.

Everyday day after class, I'd trudge up to the church attic with Lissa and Christian by my side to find Dimitri already there, leaning over a book. I'd drop my bag on the floor, announcing my presence and Dimitri would turn to me, sometimes wearing a smile but most times his face reflected weariness, just like mine had the past few weeks.

I'd walk into his arms and he'd pulled me into a brief but powerful kiss, then for a few minutes we'd just stand together in each other's arms, dreading the next few hours. Dimitri would then release me and hand me two books from the tall stack he'd already pulled out from this morning and do the same to Liss and Christian. I'd usually take a seat on the couch and crack open the spine or I'd lie on the floor on my side, and read.

This was always the worst part of my day. The constant reading in depth only to find that the book you had your nose stuffed in didn't have a word of information that you needed, was depressing.

Ever since I had been sucked into that "dream", everyone had gotten with the programme. We searched high and low but found nothing. We ransacked the church attic and the library even though we knew the library wouldn't have any we wanted or needed. When Dimitri, Liss, Chris or I weren't up here, my parents, Adrian, Mason or Eddie were.

In fact, Adrian had booked us a couple dates in Court so we could go check out their archives to see if anything was there. I hadn't even known that Court had an archive. But that was still months away; it was the only time he could get us there. Apparently they only opened up a few days of the year the elite who wanted to use it.

So for now, the only hope I had of defeating Strigoi ass was in here, looking through the ancient yellowing pages. "Ugh," I'd say when I finished a book, or most of the time I would swear. I couldn't find anything useful and for all I knew, I would be going into this battle, blindsided, not only risking my life, but the lives around me and most importantly, my children's.

We looked for anything that had to do with this unique situation, especially a prophecy. Remembering back to the attack a few weeks ago, the blond haired Strigoi said my children were written into a prophecy. We already knew my children had some sort of magical powers, the question know was _what _could they do? And what was going to happen, and what they were supposed to do. And what the Strigoi meant that they were the key to changing the world.

Dimitri had only stopped me from doing research three weeks back. I put up a protest at that, yelling and kicking and screaming before he'd even finished speaking. I'd been so completely submerged into this that I'd forgotten about my trials.

Of course the research didn't completely stop, just that I was only allowed an hour a day. Everyone continued, and so did Dimitri late into the night. When I'd argued with him about it, he claimed that I needed the sleep and the rest and that he was trained to survive on a few hours of sleep. I'd told him that was bullshit and walked away. I immediately forgave him as soon as he came back to bed and complied with his wishes, telling my mind that by giving time to myself, it would only let me give more to my children.

Now, Lissa was at my door, ready to walk me to my trials. Dimitri left early this morning to help set up. Alberta, on the Queen's orders had moved everybody's trials up to today because of the lack of guardians at Court. Because of the mission to hunt Strigoi down two months ago, guardian numbers needed to be replenished, and quickly. And the only way to do it was to pump out novices faster, so now instead of three more months of school, we were lucky if we got two more weeks.

"Ready?" She asked.

"As ready as can be." I answered. I took a deep breath and grabbed her outstretched hand. As we neared the fields, roars from the crowd grew louder. It was late in the Moroi day, around 11 at night, and it was bright as day. The sun was shining down, it was nice and warmed my skin.

One of the school's many sports fields was transformed into an arena type structure, resembling something from the Roman gladiatorial days. Bleachers had been built up and expanded. Instead of the simple wooden benches, they had been transformed into luxuriously cushioned benches complete with awnings, to shield the Moroi from the sun.

Bright banners surrounded the field that I could've seen from the cabin and they were whipping in the wind. By the stadium's entrance, barracks were built, for novices to wait, their nerves on edge. The field itself would turn into an obstacle course of dangerous tests and from the sound of deafening cheers, plenty of people were already here to witness this event.

I walked Lissa over to the stands where my parents, Adrian and Christian were sitting. "Well I guess I better go over there. Don't wanna miss my trial," I smiled nervously.

"Don't worry little dhampir, you'll do fine," Adrian said. "No need to be nervous when everyone here knows you're the best novice this school has seen."

"He's right Rose, you'll go out there and rock it. And then you'll officially have a license the kill." I looked over to Christian smirking. "And we'll be one big happy family." I rolled my eyes.

"Rose, you going to do great. Now deep breath in and out," Lissa smiled. "There, we'll be right here waiting for you after you go and show everyone that you are the best guardian the world will ever see. I believe in you, Rose, you can do it!"

"Love you Liss."

"Love you too Rose." I helped her up to her seating and turned to go but stopped when someone grabbed my arm. It was my mother.

"Focus Rose, you can do it. Just focus." I realized that this was the best it was ever going to get with Janine Hathaway.

"Thanks mom."

* * *

I leaned against one of the barrack walls, mentally preparing myself for what was about to come. All around me, classmates were in clusters, whispering. Some were doing stretches of warm up exercises. Novices stood with instructors who had previously been mentors and I wondered where mine was.

I knew I should be doing something productive instead of getting wrapped up in my own fears. What really did I have to be scared of? I'd faced Strigoi in real life and nothing would compare to that.

"Edison Castile." I heard Alto's voice call out. I hadn't even seen Eddie in here, but he'd have to pass me to get into the stadium. That sandy head was approaching me and I placed an arm on his, stopping him. He looked up at me, surprised. I pulled him into a hug, which was all that was needed to calm him down and tell him he'd do great. It was quick and then he disappeared through the doors, Stan on his tail.

I closed my eyes, focusing and centering myself. No matter how many times I told myself that I wasn't afraid, there was still part of me deep down that was. What if I wasn't good enough? What if I froze up under the pressure or shock like I had with Christian? What if I wasn't able to complete my trial?

"Are you meditating?"

I jumped. "Oh God comrade, you scared me." I turned around to see my dark haired lover standing beside me.

He placed his hands on my shoulders, rubbing soothing circles into them. I so badly wanted to lean back into him and have him wrap his arms around my waist but now was not the time and place. But I guess it was okay for him to do that, I mean he was the one initiating it. And it wasn't like my mentor couldn't calm me down right before the biggest test of my life, right?

"There's no need to be scared Rose, you're going to do just fine." He said, his velvety voice instantly giving me the stability I needed.

I turned to face him and raised my eyebrows, newfound confidence in my voice. "Don't worry comrade. If anything, I can do this blindfolded. Hell, maybe I will. Do you have anything I can use? And if you're nice to me, I'll even let you tie it on." I smiled deviously.

I could picture it in my head. Afterwards, he'd help take it off for me, among other things and we'd spend the rest of the day holed up in our room, in the bedroom, under the sheets.

Dimitri shook his head, exasperated. "Rose, I swear, sometimes it feels like every day with you is my own personal trial."

"But you love me for it," I said. It was in the context that if anyone was listening to us that they would just think of a friendly relationship between mentor and mentee.

Dimitri just answered me with one of his signature smiles and I'd realized what he'd done. He'd taken my mind of what was happening in a few seconds.

"Rosemarie Hathaway." I gulped. It was finally my turn.

I looked up at Dimitri. His eyes were filled with pride and encouragement, and I knew in that moment that was all I needed to get through these tests. "Go on Roza, I'll be waiting on the other end."

* * *

I walked cautiously through the dark, my senses open and stake in my hand. I heard rustling over to my right and upped my game one more, increasing my defence as I walked further into the arena. I didn't know when the test actually started but I was going to be rea-

I was attacked on all four sides. Guardians jumped out at me, guardians who'd been learning to fight and defending Moroi since before I was born. But it wasn't anything I couldn't handle.

Yeah, the arena wasn't flat, so that complicated everything. There were contraptions and obstacles, beams and steps that were placed everywhere meant to mess with my balance. And it messed it. But I found my balance and channeled strength and fought my way through to the rickety bridge I had to cross. I kicked and punched and flipped my opponents out of the way until I came to my real test.

My goal was to cross a 'Moroi' over the bridge and get him away from the pursuit of the 'Strigoi'. My Moroi was Daniel, a new guardian who'd been called in to replace recent numbers lost. He was playing completely docile and helpless and a little scared, just as any Moroi would.

He gave me little resistance stepping onto the bridge and I used my most coaxing, calming voice to finally get him to walk in front of me. Apparently people skills were being tested as well as combat skills. Not far behind, 'Strigoi' were approaching and Daniel stepped out. I quickly moved to shadow him still reassuring him while I stayed on alert. The bridge swung violently with a jerk and I knew our pursuers had caught up with.

"You're doing great," I told Daniel as I had to fight to keep the right tone in my voice. "I need you to move a little faster Daniel."

Daniel picked up his pace and I think I passed the persuasive part of the test. The bridge shifted again and Daniel yelped convincingly. We were sandwiched by two 'Strigoi' on either side of the bridge.

This time when I went to talk to Daniel, I had a little more ferocity to my voice. "Keep going, you can do it."

"But there's a Strigoi there!"

"Don't worry, I'll deal with him. Just move."

The next part was crucial that I got my timing right. When we approached three quarters of the way on the bridge, I told Daniel to drop down on all fours and I did the same. He obeyed immediately. "I'm going to yell at you now, ignore it."

In a louder voice I yelled, "What are you doing? We can't stop!" Then softly again to Daniel, I said, "You see those rails that connect the bridge? Grab them tightly and do not let go. Wrap them around your hands if you have to but do not let them go, no matter what. Now!"

Then I turned around and hacked at the ropes with the knife I'd been given. Thank god the blade was sharp. The rope snapped after some quick sawing and the attackers didn't even have time to react. Two 'Strigoi' fell immediately and the last one just barely grabbed a plank then slipped, falling the six foot distance. I'd been told to regard it as 50 though, a drop that would kill both Daniel and I.

Against all odds Daniel was still clutching the ropes and we started scaling the bridge like a ladder, me in front of Daniel. The 'Strigoi' at the end who hadn't fallen off, I think his name was Randall, was waiting for us but he was hanging of the end of the 'cliff' as his feet were on the bridge when I cut the rope.

I grabbed my stake out of my pocket which took a lot of balancing on my part then yanked the ropes towards me, Randall falling down giving me perfect access to stake him. For our tests we'd been given blunt ended stakes so no real damage could've been done.

Once Randall was gone, it took a little bit of coaxing to get Daniel to follow me up the bridge ladder but he did eventually come up. "Okay, let's get out of here," I was figuratively talking about the cave we were in but Daniel still nodded.

We ran like it was for our lives, Daniel closely following me. More guardians jumped out at us and I yelled at Daniel to keep running while I took care of these. Thankfully he did. I treated them like I treated Strigoi.

I almost didn't realize it ended until Alberta tugged on my arm. That was the test that I've waited for, and trained for and would determine my whole life. It felt like it only lasted the blink of an eye. Instructors gathered, nodding and crowds were cheering loudly but all I heard was the pounding of my heart in the middle of the field.

"Come one," she said. "You need to get some water and sit down." I let Alberta lead me off to the side, still dazed. I heard some people say that they had to take a break and fix the bridge. Alberta gently pushed me onto a bench and someone handed me a water bottle. It was my mother. I gulped the whole thing down in three sips as I saw her face radiating pure radiant pride.

"That was it?" I asked her.

She laughed amusedly. "Rose you were out there for nearly an hour and you blew through that test with flying colours-probably one of the best trials this school has ever seen.

"Really? It just seemed…" Easy wasn't the right word. "It was a haze, that's all."

My mom grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "You were amazing, I'm so proud of you."

"So what happens now?" I asked her.

"You become a guardian."

"Really?" It truly hit me now, the realization of what I'd just done and I felt a smile spread on my lips.

"You really do Roza." I heard his voice from behind and knew he would catch me the minute I launched myself in his arms.

He did.

And he laughed, a deep, throaty one, the sound filling me with more joy making me laugh myself. He looked at me with so much pride and love, it was so obvious. I wanted to kiss him but I still couldn't, we were in public, so I settled for a long, big one on his cheek.

"Time for you to get your promise mark."

I smiled and bit my lip; I was finally going to be a guardian now. And not a novice.

"Rose!" I whipped my head over to the voices on my right and I was bombarded with hugs. Instead of individual ones, we all just opted for a group one, even Christian.

"Rose, I'm so proud of you! I knew you could do it! And you got the best time!" Lissa exclaimed. I couldn't believe it; this was all so surreal right now.

After a bit more squealing and smiling and celebrating, we had to get ready for the ceremony in a few hours where I would get my promise mark and my charge.

Back to the cabin I walked, and since my dorm room was passing it, I quickly slipped in and out when no one was watching. I wiggled the key in the knob and opened the door. I had to leave Dimitri behind for obvious reasons, and he had to help with the cleanup and the last few tests.

I decided to take a nice long, well deserved bath. I filled up the tub with warm water and dropped some bath bombs and a nice long dredge of bubble bath into the water. I stripped and stepped over the edge of the tub, setting nicely, and resting my head against the bath pillow that I had stuck to the wall.

I placed my arms on the edge of the tub and as I relaxed I felt the after effects of today. I was tired and my bones were achy. The warm water seeped into my skin and soothed the aches and I closed my eyes for a couple minutes, catching some sleep.

* * *

I felt myself turning onto my side and subconsciously my mind was telling me that I could do that. I ignored it for a little while until it came back, this time stronger and less hard to ignore. I listened to it and turned again. Wait, I was turning…in a tub…and I wasn't drowning?

I snapped my eyes opened, taking in my surroundings. I wasn't in the bedroom and I certainly wasn't in the tub. And I certainly did remember stepping into my bath naked, not with a plushy white robe wrapped around me. My view shifted to the mirror and looking through it, the bedroom reflected back at me. The bed was underneath me and beside me was Dimitri, who was fast asleep.

I looked at the clock. "Oh shit!" It was half an hour until the ceremony started and guardians and soon to be guardians had to be in place in fifteen minutes. I twisted to Dimitri, he looked so peaceful and he needed the rest after the long hours he'd been pulling the last couple months, surely that wasn't healthy for a person.

But I had to wake him. I put my hands on his shoulders and shook, firmly. "Comrade, wake up!"

"Wh-what's going on?" He said groggily, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"We overslept; the ceremony is in fifteen minutes."

He bolted upright, his hair sticking up every which way. He cursed in his native tongue and darted out of bed, rummaging through the closets and drawers and throwing clothes at me.

I looked at him stunned. "Get dressed Roza."

"So now you're going to choose what I wear?" I said playfully. He looked at me deadpanned. I shrugged, and picked up the clothes. He actually had pretty good style.

"Hey comrade," he looked at me. "I need underwear." I sang. Seconds later, a black bra and matching panties flew my way and I caught them. Instead of getting off the bed and getting dressed like a normal person, I was too comfortable to move so I just did it on the bed.

I stood up on my knees and undid my robe, letting it slip to the floor. I moved my hand to my hair, fluffing it out. I grabbed my bra and clipped it on and then slid my panties up my legs. I heard a groan and looked up at Dimitri who was looking at me with black, lust filled eyes.

"Roza," he grunted. "The things you do to me."

_Well, let's do some more_ _things_ I decided. I sensually trailed my hands up and down my body and through my hair, watching Dimitri writhe and moan and try to get dressed. "Roza, don't make me…" he trailed off and I kept continuing my ministrations to my body especially over my bump, knowing that it drove him crazy.

"Oh god," he ran to me and grabbed my body in his strong arms, crashing his lips down to mine.

"Comrade," I said against his lips. He applied more pressure and I wanted to give in completely but I needed to be the responsible one right one or we would miss the ceremony.

"Comrade, we need to go, now," I pushed him away and he stumbled back, nodding crazily, his hair all over and his shirt all frazzled. I smoothed it down for him, knowing the effect I had on him while I trailed my hands over his strong chest and stomach and through his hair. I winked at him and pushed Dimitri backwards so I could get off the bed.

I hopped off and grabbed the dress Dimitri had given me to wear. It'd actually been a present from him too. It was a creamy white and had a scoop back, giving the tattoo artist the perfect access to my neck. I ran to the vanity and grabbed my brush, pulling my hair into a high ponytail with a few strands out to frame my face nicely. I didn't have any time for makeup so I just swiped on some of Dimitri's lip gloss and threw it in my bag. If I needed anything else, Lissa would have it.

Out by the door, Dimitri was lacing up his dress shoes and he had my flats out for me. I scrunched my nose up at him and he looked at me, exasperated. I shook my head and pointed to the shoes that were sitting beside him. It was probably a bad idea but I decided to wear my black suede platform pumps.

"Roza, remember last time you wore _smaller _heels than that?"

"Ssh comrade," I made a gimme motion with my hand and he sighed, giving them to me. "You'll just have to carry me back, and take them off," I said sultrily, continuing with the act from earlier. He gulped and I bent down to slip them on.

* * *

I walked up and luckily for me, I stood beside Dimitri. The school's guardians' were proudly standing around the room, watching on.

I was tempted to talk to him but as this was a ceremony, talking was prohibited. Plus it would be rude. My insides fluttered in anticipation as I was next to get my promise mark. Despite being tattooed before, I still anticipated the sting that would come with the needle and the after effect of being poked and prodded multiple times with a sharp point.

The tattoo artist looked up at me and gave me a reassuring smile, letting me know that it was now or never. I took a seat and bent forwards, displaying my neck for him to see. He grunted, expecting to see a blank canvas but seeing my two molnija marks and the zvezda mark already there.

This time, it was me who grunted at the first feel of the needle touching my skin. The sharp sting made its way across my neck, creating the twisted line, sort of snake like 'S'. I hissed when the point dug in farther and I bit my tongue to keep from yelping. I felt fingers lace with mine and squeeze. I returned the gesture, knowing the hand inside and out like it was my own.

I focused on the feel of the familiar roughness and Dimitri's thumb stroking the skin between my thumb and forefinger. And before I knew it, the tattoo artist was putting away his needle and placing a bandage over the fresh ink. I said my thanks and got up, moving over to the area reserved for invited guests.

Mason and Eddie were already sitting with the Moroi. Lissa, Christian, Adrian and my parents were all in attendance. I congratulated my boys on a great job done and we exchanged hugs and wishes of getting a good assignment. I also finally got to sit down. And again, I was regretting my choice of footwear.

An hour later, all novices now wore their promise mark, their pledge to guard Moroi. With that also would bring our assignments. We wouldn't have a separate assembly for that, it was going to be done right here.

Alberta stepped onto the makeshift stage. The cafeteria had been turned into something you find at the Royal Court, like a ballroom. Elaborate decorations adorned the walls and grand chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Everywhere was gold and silver, and it was magnificent. I felt like Cinderella a bit. Going to the ball, in a beautiful dress and seeing her Prince Charming across the room smile at her and know that everything's going to be alright as long as she had him by her side.

"Congratulations to all our novices! You are now finally guardians!" She smiled and clapped, everyone else in the crowd following suit. Hoots of joy and cat calls echoed through the room and I admitted that some were mine and most were from our small group that gathered in the centre of the room.

"Okay," Alberta said loudly, grabbing everyone's attention and turning it back to her. I zoned out a bit while she recited to us what our duty was and what would follow this ceremony. Friday was our last day at St. Vlad's and then we were out in the real world. That was pretty soon considering today was Monday. We were going to be out there with no instruction manual, or anyone to turn to to ask for help or what to do in certain situations. It was going to be all up to me, to us, to be making decisions for our Moroi, who placed their lives in our hands.

"Now, for the assignments," Alberta grabbed her clipboard. The way this worked was the Moroi, in alphabetical order, would walk up on stage, then Alberta would call out their guardian of guardians, if they were assigned two.

"Abby Badica." Abby was a nice girl, she wasn't a stuck up rich royal and was pretty decent to have a conversation with. If I wasn't going to be assigned to Lissa, I would've wanted her. "Mason Ashford." I smiled at Mason, congratulating him as he walked up the stage to his Moroi.

The list went on, Xander Badica; Abby's brother got Ryan Aylesworth. "Vasilisa Dragomir," I patted her back as Lissa crossed the short distance and gracefully climbed the steps.

"Come one up here Rose." And like the girl I was, I did my happy dance all the way up to Lissa. I put my arm around her shoulders, which was a bit awkward considering our height difference but it nonetheless worked. We got cheers from the crowd and I got a couple laughs for my little performance. But the one thing that made me most happy was the smile, at the back of the audience, from the man that towered over everyone at 6'7.

"Now as you all might know, Guardian Belikov was to be Vasilisa's second guardian. That has changed; as is Guardian Belikov leaving next year." Awws and boos were muttered throughout the crowd, mostly by the female population and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at them.

"In his place, Edison Castile." My eyes flew wide, I was shocked. Turning to Eddie, he wore the same expression but he walked up the stage and took Lissa's other side. Claps reverberated throughout and Alberta motioned for us that it was time to step out of the glory.

As soon as I got down, I jumped on Lissa and Eddie, pulling all three of us into a ginormous group hug. Once we were down, we joined Adrian, Christian and my parents again to see that Abby and Mason had also joined us.

I welcomed Abby and immediately knew that this girl would become one of us, given time. We engaged in small talk and hadn't noticed how much time had passed until another shock came to all of us.

"Christian Ozera." Christian's head snapped up at the mention of his name. "Christian?" Lissa gave Sparky a little push to get him going and almost automatically, Chris walked up to the stage. "Yes Mr. Ozera, you have been given a guardian." Alberta said with a smile after Christian pointed to himself in disbelief.

"Guardian Belikov." The crowd including Christian did another double take. Even the people beside us.

"You did this didn't you?" Lissa asked me.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I was Dimitri's idea. I'm just as shocked as you that Alberta actually let him switch."

* * *

"Ugh," I said as Dimitri and I walked hand in hand to the cabin. "That was extremely long. Can we sleep now?"

"Sleep or _sleep."_

"Sleep." I had forgotten about the deal we made earlier when I was taunting him. Now I felt kinda bad putting out but lately I had been feeling tired. And it's been happening more frequently and for a longer time. I'd find myself dozing off during the day and it was different, different from the kind of tired that's associated with boring. This tired was the actual sleepy tired.

I hoped this was just a symptom of the pregnancy and it would go away fast. I yawned and took Dimitri's arm, wrapping it around my waist and I leant on his chest, letting him carry some of my weight. He gladly took it and some more by picking me up and I immersed into the sleep, allowing it took take me away.

**So how was it? Review and tell me! And as a quick note, I'm co-authoring a story with **Jacints, **called **The Little Black Box. **So if you want to check it out, it's on her profile and the link will be up on mine. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it and Happy Holidays to those who don't!**

**Love, **

**Sarah**


	26. Chapter 26

**Ok, I know I'm really really horrible for not updating in over a month. I apologize a thousand times over and over again and hope this chapter makes up for it. Quick disclaimer, **I don't own any VA content but I do own the plot. **Enjoy!**

"Ehhh," I groaned. I was still sleeping, or at least trying to as Dimitri shook my shoulders – which I did not appreciate the least bit. I half-heartedly made a swatting motion, trying to get rid of him while I buried my face deeper into the pillow.

"Rose, time to get up, love," he whispered. At least he was a bit considerate by whispering.

"Why?" Since the trials and the assembly yesterday, classes were not mandatory for the graduating novice classes until the actual graduation ceremony. That was in two days and it was heaven sent if you asked me. I guess it was kind of a reward, not really, but I liked to think of it that way.

"I've got a surprise for you," he said into the back of my neck, right over my new tattoo. The action sent tickles though my body and I couldn't resist the giggle that escaped my mouth. "C'mon, get up." He kept on repeating this motion until I turned over and faced him.

"Morning beautiful," Dimitri leant down a pressed his lips to mine. I sighed out of pure contentment; it was long and slow and just perfection.

"You know, a girl could get used to waking up like that." He raised his eyebrow. "I'm just saying," I shrugged my shoulders. "Well, what's this surprise causing me to miss my beauty sleep?"

"You'll see," Dimitri said mysteriously. He grabbed my hand in his and pulled me out of bed. I grumbled and stood up, yawning. I covered my mouth with my hand and started to make my way to the bathroom. "You go get ready and I'll make us some breakfast." He gave me a quick peck and released me.

I reached above me, touching the sky to stretch my arms and upper back, before curling forwards for my lower back. I grabbed a hair tie on the counter and put my hair in a messy bun. Turning on the taps, I splashed some water in my face, hoping it wake me up a bit and then reached for my toothbrush.

I shook out the tiredness and blinked a few times, focusing my vision. I looked into the giant mirror and dropped my toothbrush in the sink, yelling "Holy shit!"

I squinted to see if I had seen what I had really seen. No way…it wasn't possible. I turned my head sideways, examining it from each end. It was like overnight, my stomach had inflated and now it was super noticeable, like balloon noticeable.

Just last night it was a little bump, growing and this morning, it's like _poof! _But I was only 5 months…I'd have to go see Dr. O about this.

The door ripped open and Dimitri stood in the doorway, the expression of his face saying, "where's the fire?"

"What's wrong Roza?" He asked and I could imagine his heart pounding. I assessed the situation, yep, if our roles were reversed, I would have the same reaction.

I turned around to face him, surprised that he didn't see it. Well, I guess he wouldn't, his eyes were still on mine, searching for the danger. Using both index fingers, I pointed down at what had happened. Dimitri's eyes travelled down and rested on what was no longer my small bump, and went wide.

It was like my comrade and my tummy were magnets and they were attracting. As if something controlled him, he was moving towards me and kneeling down, his hands on the sides of my 'bump'. I didn't know what to refer to this as, so I was still going to keep calling it a bump. It was simple and easy, just the way I liked things.

"I don't know what happened, it was like it was overnight and-" I was cut off when lips pressed against mine and arm encircled my waist, resting on my lower back. I certainly wasn't going to protest.

"I love you, so much," he whispered in between kisses.

"I love you too, comrade." I smiled and rested my head on his chest. Nothing could be better this morning, not even when I looked at the clock and saw that it was four in the morning. All that mattered right now was right here, right now. We were finally becoming a family. And that thought always brought a smile to my face.

"I don't want to leave right now," Dimitri began.

"But…?"

"I'm afraid I'll have my butt kicked if we don't get moving," he finished.

I laughed. "Let's get moving then, I'd hate to see such a wonderful butt get kicked." I slapped his fine ass and pushed him out of the washroom, and finishing my toiletry duties, including the regular morning sickness. I was going to be so glad when that was over. I was really getting tired of this vomiting story, especially because it was not _just _only mornings. It was the whole day.

Remembering something I called out to Dimitri. He ducked his head back in. "Can we go see Dr. O before this surprise of yours?"

"Of course. Let me go make some calls."

"Thanks." I moved out of the bathroom and into the bedroom again, this time to the closet. I started going through everything but _nothing _would work. It was all too small now. Just yesterday these clothes fit. Today? I wished myself good luck trying to get into them.

I groaned; I was in dire need of a shopping trip. Oh lord, I would have to start wearing maternity clothes. I gagged; those things were ugly as hell. I didn't believe in god necessarily but right now, I clasped my hands together and sent up a prayer. _Please, don't let me suffer these next few months and I promise not to do anything sinful. _

I was getting desperate now. Melodramatic much? I sighed. The mood swings were well on their way and making quick time. I shook it off and took a black long sleeved tee out of the drawer. This one was made of stretchy material so hopefully it would still fit. It was still big on me when I had a flat stomach, so here's to hoping.

No such luck. It stopped right below my boobs and didn't go further. _Damn. _I wiggled a bit trying to get it off, and finally for struggling long enough I decided to call Dimitri, again.

"Comrade?" I said loud enough for him to hear. "Can you come here please?" A few seconds later I heard footsteps approaching and saw a very amused face.

He let out a chuckle and smiled. "Oh Rose, only you get yourself stuck in these situations."

"Can you just please help me?" I asked, really wanting to get out of this jumble.

He held up one finger and I exhaled loudly. He pulled out his phone and held it up towards me…

"Oh no, comrade if you know what's good for you, you won't press that button." I put on my most terrifying face, or what I thought it was. He wasn't fazed by it.

"We have to start filing that scrapbook sometime Rose, why not now?" He looked at me. "Smile Roza."

I did not. And the camera flashed anyways. He was so going to pay for that.

"Now will you help me get out of this stupid shirt?"

In the end, I ended up wearing one of Dimitri smaller hoodies; it was black, over a tank I'd gotten on and some comfy leggings. I left my hair up in the messy bun and proceeded to finish my morning duties.

"You're a god, comrade," I said walking into the kitchen while he was pulling the tray out of the oven. "Yum, my favourite," I reached for one and immediately dropped it, burning my fingers on the lingering heat. "Shit!"

I stuck the fingers in my mouth the cool the burning sensation. "They're hot."

"Yeah, I think I figured that much out, comrade. Thanks for the warning _before _I burnt my fingers."

"I'm pretty sure you didn't burn your fingers, you'd be in a lot more pain." He looked at me, dully. "Let me see," he said after I pouted out my dissatisfaction. I put my hand out and he took my fingers, examining them. He sighed.

"Make it stop," I whined. He rolled his eyes at my antics and kissed each individual one.

"Better?"

"Better." I said as I watched him with awe as I saw him pick up the same doughnuts and package them, not even burning his own fingers. "How...? You know, don't answer that."

He shook his head and laughed. I wondered what I was doing to earn them. "Let's go Roza."

I followed him to the front door and slipped on a pair of black running shoes, then taking Dimitri's hand in my own and following him towards the clinic. I took advantage of the time alone and no peeping eyes to cuddle with Dimitri out in the open. Our fingers were interlocked and I swung our arms up and down.

We arrived at the clinic far too soon for my liking. As I hopped up on the bed, Dr. O prepped her equipment and I raised the hoodie and tank to expose my bump.

"I see we have grown." Dr. O said and she squeezed the jelly on my stomach.

"That'd be kind of an understatement Doc," I said. "So, how are my little babies doing?"

She smiled widely and I knew good news was coming. "Well, their heartbeats are very strong. And if you look there," she pointed towards the top of the screen, "you can see your little guy's toes and over here your little girl's fingers."

I gasped and accidentally sat up, peering at the screen. "Wow," I touched the screen and counted 20 fingers and 20 toes. I reached behind me and waved my hand to grab Dimitri's attention and bring it towards the screen but it was already there.

"Roza, look, those are ours," He said in awe.

"Yeah," I couldn't keep the smile off my face. "They're no longer potatoes." Dimitri and Dr. O both laughed.

"How far along is she?" Dimitri asked, beating me to it.

"Entering month six…wait, that can't be right," she rushed over to her desk and grabbed a pile of papers, sifting through them.

I looked at Dimitri, feeling very worried. He grabbed my hand and gently rubbed the back with his thumb. His eyes seemed to convey my only consolation, saying that, whatever it was, it was going to be fine.

"Everything okay Doctor?" He asked.

"Yes, it just seems that the speed of the pregnancy has increased. It's no longer that ratio of doubled. I've been so blind. I haven't been tracking the past few weeks as properly as I should and they haven't been following that pattern for a while." She looked up from her notes to face us.

"So what does this mean?" I asked.

"It means that we can no longer track this pregnancy normally. It'll progress as fast or slow as it wants."

"So, I could be giving birth sooner than I thought I would be?" She nodded and I huffed in disbelief. "Is there _any way _we can follow the pregnancy?"

"There's not much I can do except increase the checkups to a weekly basis. That, in itself, might not be enough."

"But I've only been pregnant for 2 months, how is this possible?"

"Honestly, I don't know, Rose. We could chalk it up to supernaturalcy but genes would be the mostly likely answer."

I nodded. "Okay, so we'll start off with weekly visits. Is there anything else I can do? Or Dimitri?"

"I'm afraid not. These babies are going to keep growing at whatever pace they like."

I couldn't quite say what my opinion on that was at the moment so I just stayed quiet and accepted the paper towels Dr. O handed me to wipe my stomach clean. I pulled the sweater down and stepped down. We thanked her and made an appointment for next Friday.

"We'll get through this." I said, convincing myself more than Dimitri as we headed to wherever. He nodded and kissed the crown of my head, wrapping his arms around my waist while we walked. "But wait!"

He looked at me questioningly. "I'm starting 6 months right? That means I'm in my second trimester but if these babies progress how quick they are, I'll be well into my last trimester in a month..."

"…and you can't fly." He finished with a sigh.

"Hey, hey, don't worry. We'll figure it out, right?" I reassured.

His beautiful smile returned. "Always Roza."

"I love you." I said.

"And I love you."


	27. Chapter 27

**_Yoo hoo! Guess who's back so quickly! _****_**Oh my God! I just finished The Ruby Circle less than 12 hours ago and I'm freaking out! My mind is in a jumble and it's all turned to mush. I seriously can't even…ASDFGHJKL! Wow, then it really sunk it that there really will be no more of the VA world…I'm so sad right now. If anyone would like to fangirl with me, please PM me. I need someone to talk to and all my friends don't get it. :) Enjoy this chapter! **_**

_Previously; _

"_We'll get through this." I said, convincing myself more than Dimitri as we headed to wherever. He nodded and kissed the crown of my head, wrapping his arms around my waist while we walked. "But wait!"_

_He looked at me questioningly. "I'm starting 6 months right? That means I'm in my second trimester but if these babies progress how quick they are, I'll be well into my last trimester in a month."_

"…_And you can't fly." He finished. Dimitri sighed. _

"_Hey, hey, don't worry. We'll figure it out, right?" _

"_Always Roza." _

"_I love you." I said. _

We walked in silence until we were facing… the front gates? where everyone else was waiting.

Lissa and my mother stood among the crowd and I wondered what was going on. And seeing Alberta confused this situation further. "Rose!"

"Hey Liss. What's going on?" I asked, detaching myself from Dimitri.

"Can you believe it? Alberta gave us permission to go to Missoula!" She squealed and threw her arms around me, frowning when she couldn't make it all the way up to me. _What's going on with you?_

Through the bond I heard her question and I looked around before answering her. Once I was sure no one was looking at us directly, I spun her around and lifted my sweater, tentatively.

I thought I would've had to flee from the scene, dragging her while covering her mouth. The way she squealed brought everybody's attention back on us. "It's okay folks, she just got excited about something." I said pointing to Lissa. The girl could barely even contain her smile.

_How far along? _

_6 months. I checked with Dr. O this morning. _

_How?!_

_I'll explain everything later. _

"Woah, Rose," I heard a snarky voice approaching. "Did you swallow a cow whole?"

"Watch it Ozera," I growled out, crossing my arms unconsciously, knowing it would have no effect.

I turned around to face the lanky Moroi. "I'm just saying," he held up his arms in mock defence. "Ow," he hissed.

I raised my eyebrows and watched him rub a sore spot on his arm. One glance at Lissa and her face gave it away. The smile and glint in her eyes told me that she had elbowed him. I laughed so hard through the bond. _You go girl! _I cheered her on, giving her a mental thumbs up.

"Let's start loading, people, we only have a few hours until dark." We followed Alberta's instructions and we piled into the vans. I sat in the back, Dimitri next to me. Lissa and Christian were sitting in the middle and two guardians, Eddie and Alberta, who was driving, let the Moroi be flanked.

Since my mother and Abe insisted on coming along, a second van was ensued, this time only with two other guardians. They both belonged to Abe. The extra room was going to be used for the result of two teenage girls shopping. That meant lots and lots of bags.

The two hour drive to the nearest mall, which was in Missoula, was bearable. Once upon a time ago, it wouldn't have been. Like the time we took a trip down for the Equinox dance with Victor and his now dead daughter. Being that close to Dimitri, especially in the early days of crushing on him so intensely, had been really difficult. Not to mention that a relationship would be severely frowned upon.

But now? Dimitri's arms were wrapped around me, resting on my tummy, my head on his chest, dozing in and out of sleep. Since everyone in this van knew about us, it was okay for us to hold each other. Dimitri kissed the crown of my head and his fingers worked their magic, massaging the kinks out of my neck.

"That feels really good," I moaned.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Definitely," I whispered breathlessly back to him.

Dimitri leaned down to me and I reached up, thinking he was going to kiss me but his head moved to the side, mouth so close to my ear. He blew across it and the action caused me to go weak at the knees. He placed a tiny peck on my lobe and said, "I can make you feel _really good tonight _Roza."

His hands never stopped as they trailed down to lower until he was tracing patterns in my butt. I closed my eyes waiting for the kiss that would follow and promise good things but it never came. Instead, the interruption led my eyes to land on the crystal blue ones that were staring down at us, nausea on his face.

"Do you think we can stop all the foreplay now? It's making me really sick."

"Christian," Lissa warned.

"What?"

Wagging her finger at him, Lissa said, "Leave them alone. They're so sweet." She smiled and he gagged.

The van pulled to a stop and I looked out. We were here. Everybody stepped out. I patted myself, making sure I was still equipped. My stake, the one Dimitri had given me, was secured in a holster at my waist. Knives were tied to my ankles and I had a gun placed at the back of my pants, hidden underneath the hoodie, just in case there were human threats.

* * *

"First order of business, maternity wear!"

"Lissa! Not so loud!" I said, grabbing her arm, pulling her into the nearest store. Which happened to be Thyme Maternity. The world had a karmic way of working.

Abe and Chris had parted ways with us when we got into the mall, taking the majority of the guardians, which happened to be the guys. Now, only Alberta, my mom and myself lingered with Lissa; only the females were grouped. Eddie had put up a fight when deciding who would go with whom. Eventually we agreed that halfway through, we'd do a switch up.

I followed Lissa to a rack of long sleeved tops and leaned on one of them while she went through item by item. It was still pretty early in the human day so hardly anyone was in the mall.

"How'd Dimitri take it this morning?" She asked, holding up a red tee. I shook my head and placed it back.

"Good. He started worshipping the bump."

She laughed, "Rose, that's hardly a bump anymore."

"Well what am I supposed to call it?" I moved over to adjacent rack and picked up a few tanks. I would need those.

She gave me a look at shrugged my shoulders. "I'm calling it a bump."

Lissa shook her head and handed me a couple long sleeved shirts. "Liss, when am I going to need these? It's like, a million degrees outside." That was a bit of an exaggeration. It was the middle of April and still spring. Might as well have been the same thing.

"Have you forgotten your trip to Russia in like, 2 weeks?"

"Ugh, don't remind me. I'm not ready to deal with that shit." I growled, my mood from finding out I might not be able to go around the world coming back.

"Wait, what's wrong? I thought you were super excited to be going?" Lissa asked, confused.

"Um, it's a really long story, and one I don't mind telling you," I added when I saw her face fall, "but I don't think we have the time for it, right here."

"Oh," she said, when she realized that we were still in the mall.

"But," I said, trying to lift her mood, "I will give you a shortened version while you keep looking through the racks."

Smiling, she readily agreed and pulled me to another table, where athletic sweaters were laid out. "Well, it turns out that these ones are growing at a rate not even Dr. O can comprehend, they're growing too fast. And in two weeks, I might very well be in my third trimester. And I won't be able to fly 'cause I'll be too big."

"Oh," she said, again. "That's…wow…"

"I know. But hey, we'll see what happens." I quickly scanned the room, checking for immediate danger. "Oh look, here comes my mother." I rolled my eyes and Lissa laughed.

When my mom learned that I needed new stuff and whatnot for this pregnancy, she took it upon herself to be my main caregiver and make sure I was most comfortable. I appreciated her efforts, and it continued to bring us closer together, but sometimes, she got on my nerves and annoyed me to no end.

"Rose," my mother came up to me, her arms full of clothing. "I found a couple pieces for you."

I took them from her and thanked her. Piece by piece I went through, making sure they were okay and they wouldn't make me look like a complete dork. Though I did start to question things when I held up a pair of pants that could've fit two of me when I wasn't pregnant.

"Are you sure about these?" I gave her a questioning look. "Cause they look like they'll fit, never."

She laughed. "You'll thank me in a few weeks."

"I trust your judgement mom, don't make me regret it."

I gathered all the clothing and proceeded to the checkout with Lissa in tow. I placed them on the counter and waited as the lady rang them up.

As she bagged them, she looked between them and me, the judgement clear. It was obvious that she was looking down on me for being a teen mom.

I didn't give a fuck. I just waited until she asked for payment and handed her the Visa Gold Abe had given me before we left the academy grounds. I was reluctant at first to take it but he insisted and wouldn't take it back, telling me that he wanted to buy my stuff for me. I drew the line at $800 though.

Walking in the mall reminded me of when Lissa and I had escaped from the Academy in those two years. Every weekend, she'd want to take a trip the mall but I'd only allowed it twice a month. I was Lissa's near guard, walking arm in arm with her while my mother and Alberta walking behind, lightly chatting, her far guards.

"Oh," I said as we neared Victoria Secret. "I need to go in here." I steered Lissa into the store and immediately went to the bras.

As I looked at them, my mom, once again came up to me. "That time already?" I nodded. "You should probably get measured."

Fortunately for us, an employee came up to us and asked us if we wanted to be measured. My mom politely declined.

"Okay, can you raise your arms for me?" I consented as she wrapped the tape around my bust and consulted her chart. "Just as I thought, 32DD is what you should be looking for."

"Are you sure?" There was no way I was a 32DD already. If that were true, then I skipped a whole cup size.

"Sure as can be. Anything else I can help you with?"

"Nope. Thanks," I said. She smiled and left us. I grudgingly moved over to the double D section and started picking bras of the hooks.

"So I see you've grown quite bit." Lissa giggled.

"Don't remind me. I wish they would stop. They're getting in my way. Though, Dimitri doesn't seem to mind one bit." I grumbled. She laughed.

I noticed she had a couple in her bag and from the looks of it, she was planning on some sexy time with Pyro. They were all lingerie; lacy and racy.

"Honey, not this one." She gave me a sad look. "Trust me; it's just going to wash you out." I placed the black bra and thong set back.

I examined the rest of her bag and pushed her into the change room, making her model each one for me. I either said yay or nay and she put them into their respective piles.

Of course I had to do the same thing and by the end I had 12 new bras and twice the amount in panties and thongs. We both rang up our purchases and decided to get something to eat because the two shops alone had carried us into lunch, or what was supposed to be lunch since we were running on a human schedule for the time being.

We called the others and met up in the food court. Lissa chose to get a salad and the rest of us got two large boxes of pizza and we shared them. "No one is making _any _comments on what I eat." I meant if for everyone but placed emphasis on Christian. In the end, I ended up eating half of one box by myself.

"Okay, for the second half of our trip, Vasilisa and Christian will be guarded by myself, Guardians Hathaway Senior, Chase, Spencer and Castile. Mr. Mazur will meet us in 2 hours with his guardians when we leave. Dismiss."

Quicker than I'd ever seen a Moroi move, Lissa and Christian were gone before I could say a word.

"But-"

"Ssh Roza," Dimitri said. "It's just us. It's _just us._"

I frowned not getting his meaning, waiting for an explanation. But he just kept looking at me. "So we're alone, with no one here and it's just us."

"And what is that usually called Rose, when two people are alone and it's just them?"

"A date. _We're on a date?_" He smiled. "We're on a date. Like a real one where couples spend time together? How?"

"Guardian secrets." He smirked. Dimitri swung an arm around my shoulders and we started walking aimlessly.

"You can't use that one me anymore comrade, I'm a guardian now." I said flatly.

He just shrugged and we kept walking. Since no one here knew us, we were free to hold hands and cuddle and all those things couples do in malls and wherever. We definitely took advantage of it.

"Let's go in here," Dimitri led us into a luggage store. "We'll need new suitcases."

"But we might not-"

"Ssh," he silenced me for a second time in less than half an hour. "Think positively." He winked and went off to talk to an employee and I looked around.

There were pretty nice suitcases and they were huge. Dimitri came back to me while I was looking at a shiny, black one with a hard case. I didn't like the cloth ones.

"Look, it's a set of four. Two suitcases, a hand piece and it comes with a handbag. I think it's a good deal, can we get it?"

Dimitri looked at me, trying to figure out my real motives. Damn, he was good. "Okay, I want the handbag...but it's actually a good set and a good price. I could chip in too to help pay. And it's got the 360 degree wheels and everything. Please?"

Dimitri moved closer to examine and look over the luggage in question. He picked it up and put it down, opened it up and rolled it around.

"Can I help you?" A saleswoman had come up to me while I had wandered away from Dimitri, my attention captured by the handbags on the wall. I turned to face her. She was middle aged and dressed very fancy casual.

"Um, no thank you. I'm just looking; my boyfriend there is checking out a piece we're thinking of getting." I said.

She smiled. "Well, if there's anything I can help you with, don't hesitate to ask."

I thanked her and moved back over to Dimitri, who seemed close to finished with his inspection. "So?" I asked.

"Let's get it."

"Really?" He smiled at me. "You're the best, comrade," I squealed, throwing my arms around him.

Walking out the store with suitcases stacked inside each other, I couldn't stop admiring my new handbag. It was a really trivial item, and a luxury I didn't need, but it signified something much more for me. This piece of leather reminded me that I was a regular girl, and I wanted regular things. In that moment, I wasn't the girl destined to protect her best friend for life. I was a girl, whose boyfriend had just bought her something she wanted. And it felt great.

"What else do we do?"

"Ice cream. And doughnuts, lots." Dimitri laughed and looped his arm around my neck, pulling me close to him.

"Then ice cream and doughnuts it is, for my beautiful girlfriend." Dimitri's voice kind of trailed off and because quieter as the sentence went on. I looked up at him to see what the problem was. A frown was making its way onto his face and his eyes were sort of distant.

"What's wrong, comrade?"

He coughed, clearing his throat. "Nothing, milaya. Let's go get you that ice cream."

"And doughnuts." He rolled his eyes at me but the worried look was still in his eyes. I decided to leave it alone for now. But before I did, I watched him slip a causal hand into his pocket and…roll around an object?

**So let me know what you guys think! Leave me some love, maybe they'll help me feel better *sniff***


	28. Chapter 28

**Hey Guys! Another quick update! Just a quick question, have any of you guys heard about the dress colours controversy yet? I personally think it's gold and white but I'd love to hear what you guys think! Ok, hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**(I'd also like to thank my beta real quick! Thanks girl!)**

_Previously; _

_Walking out the store with suitcases stacked inside each other, I couldn't stop admiring my new handbag. It was a really trivial item, and a luxury I didn't need, but it signified something much more for me. This piece of leather reminded me that I was a regular girl, and I wanted regular things. In that moment, I wasn't the girl destined to protect her best friend for life. I was a girl, whose boyfriend had just bought she wanted. And it felt great. _

"_What else do we do?" _

"_Ice cream. And doughnuts, lots." Dimitri laughed and looped his arm around my neck, pulling me close to him. _

"_Then ice cream and doughnuts it is, for my beautiful girlfriend." Dimitri's voice kind of trailed off and was quieter as the sentence went on. I looked up at him to see what the problem was. A frown was making its way onto his face and his eyes were sort of distant. _

"_What's wrong, comrade?" _

_He coughed, clearing his throat. "Nothing, milaya. Let's go get you that ice cream."_

"_And doughnuts." He rolled his eyes at me but the worried look was still in his eyes. I decided to leave it alone for now. But before I did, I watched him slip a causal hand into his pocket and…roll around an object?_

My last day at the Academy. It was very bittersweet. "I'd never thought I'd say this in a million years but, I think I'm going to miss this place." I said as Lissa and I walked arm in arm, throughout the school.

I woke up this morning, and for the first time, I didn't have any morning sickness, pains or aches or anything negative that came with the pregnancy. I looked in the mirror and still couldn't believe that I was 6 months pregnant and I might be giving birth in a few weeks.

"Okay babies, please be good for mommy today," I whispered to them as I rubbed a soothing hand over my belly. They responded with two very strong kicks and it brought a smile to my face.

I then, met up with Lissa and we began our stroll down memory lane in the primary campus. "I remember when I first got dropped off here." I said as we stood in front of the kindergarten doors. "My mother didn't even do it herself."

"Rose." Lissa chastised. "You know that she was doing her best."

"Yeah, yeah." We opened the doors and walked inside. Nothing had changed, it was all the same. The little desks were arranged in the same formation, the hooks for backpacks and jackets were in the same place, the teacher's desk, everything.

My legs moved like they were on autopilot, taking me to a seat in the second row of the class. I placed my hand down on the desk, a smile coming to my face. Lissa had joined me, standing next to the desk beside me. "Remember when I chucked a book at our teacher and called her a fascist bastard?"

Lissa laughed. "Making five year olds spell Vasilisa Dragomir and Rosemarie Hathaway was pretty stupid."

"That it was, my dear." I linked my arm around her neck. "Come, we've got more places to go visit."

And that was basically how our morning went. When we came back in the afternoon, it was nice to fall back into our old ways. Lissa came over to the cabin carrying a huge bag and a small suitcase. It was time for graduation.

We both set about it. First, I took a quicker shower, and Lissa did the same. Standing in the bedroom, in nothing but our towels and undies, Lissa opened her kit.

"Ok, you first." She squealed. I rolled my eyes and consented, sitting down on the vanity chair, facing her. What felt like hours later, I was told that I could look in the mirror. I fell in love with myself. I'd always known that I had a beautiful face, but Lissa accentuated my features, giving me an edgier, sexy feel.

My lips were a bright red, the color of cherries, and shiny as hell. My eyes were the most magnificent shade of gold, bringing out the brown of my eyes perfectly. And the eyeliner was winged, but only to a touch, and my lashes were lush and long, coated by a generous use of mascara.

"Ooh, Liss, I love it!" I stood up and pouted, making my eyes go all wide. I smiled. Dimitri was going to go wild. I couldn't wait. "Okay, missy, your turn." I gently pushed her into the chair and began working on her face.

My first choice was a green colour palate, to make her eyes pop. I scanned the kit for a light green but not to pale, I wanted something subtle yet something bold. I was going for a sophisticated, kind of angelic look which best described Lissa. A far contrast to my 'devil' looks.

But as I stopped on the pink, I immediately knew I had to use that one. I quickly picked it up, along with a darker shade and a white. I was going to go all out. I brushed from darkest to lightest on top of each other, blending when needed for that smoky look. I opted for only a then swipe of eye liner and a few brushes of mascara, lying easy. Her eyes itself were the only adornment she really needed. I choose to accentuate her features, giving the illusion that her cheekbones were raised and her lips were fuller than they really were. I didn't bother with any foundation or any of the kind because her skin was flawless, as ever.

I spun the chair around, "Okay, you can look now."

"Oh, Rose," she stared at herself, not believing it was really her. "It's so beautiful." She smiled.

"Hair time," I said, rubbing my hands together. "Sit back down." In the end, I left Lissa's hair mostly natural, just curling the strands a bit to give her that beach wave look. I deep parted her hair on the left, and threw most of it over her right shoulder.

Lissa decided that I should have an up do, nothing too fancy, and something easy for me to loosen for later tonight when Dimitri would be mine. I didn't know what she did, but she tightened a loose, knotted bun with only a few pins. It was relaxed, and strands were left out, framing my face nicely.

"We only have an hour left, so let's get into our dresses." I nodded and went for the closet, taking out a hanger with a bag over it. As I removed the bag, I still couldn't believe my luck at it. It was one of those dresses made just for me, and the best part was that, it would hide my huge stomach.

I unzipped the back and Lissa held it open for me while I took a step inside. She fastened the zipper and I turned to look at myself. It was really stunning. It was black velvet, and had an empire waist. It was sleeveless but still had straps and it came just below my knee. The dress itself was pretty simplistic, but it was beautiful and sexy at the same time, and that's what called to me. I smoothed down the full skirt and twirled around, smiling.

Then, I helped Lissa into hers. Lissa chose to go with a pretty in pink a-line dress that stopped above her knee. It was white and had thin straps and it was covered with sparkles. The top half, the chest area, was nothing but shiny silver sequins. The waist line had a beaded design that went in diagonally vertical lines, and as the dress went down, the sequins grew sparser. It was fit for a princess. Keeping with the same theme, Lissa stepped into silver winged sandals that were about 7 inches high by Giuseppe Zanotti.

I choose to go with simple black heels that had quite a bit of heel, 5 inches, which I was sure I would pay for later, with a thin strap around the ankle and opened footed, save for the closed toe. I slipped on a big bangle, with thick black and white vertical stripes adorning it and a gold statement necklace. Lissa chose to forgo a necklace, saying it'd be too much sparkle and shine and I agreed. Instead, she chose to wear a singular bracelet, a diamond one that Christian had given her. It was silver and simplistic, the perfect contrast to the busyness that underwent on her dress.

We were done, save for one thing. I walked into my closet and took out the 2 items of clothing that had haunted me for the past week. Our graduation gowns. They were a horrible shade of maroon and I looked hideous in it. I handed Lissa hers and we reluctantly slipped them on. Thank God we only had to wear them for the ceremony. Lissa and I grabbed our clutches and we on our way.

* * *

There were thousands of people here, and I was not joking. The Academy had decided to hold an outdoor ceremony this year and air and water users were manipulating the sky into the perfect backdrop. We were approaching sunset, which was extremely late for Moroi, but everybody had switched their sleep schedule last night in order to have the perfect day.

There were probably about 300 hundred students graduating, maybe more, and everyone's parents and whatever relatives had come to celebrate with us. Lissa and I met Christian over on the other side, and saw him talking with a woman, who looked like a female version of him, save for the mar down the side of her face. She was really beautiful with long black hair and icy blue eyes.

"Hi, Lissa, it's always so nice to see you." The lady and Lissa embraced. Then she turned to me. "And you must be Rose Hathaway."

I nodded slightly, confused as to who this woman was. I'd never met her before; I'm pretty sure I couldn't forget a face like hers. She laughed. "It seems that I've left my manners at home, I'm Tasha Ozera, Christian's aunt. I've heard so much about you."

"I hope that it's all good things," I said, raising a brow at Christian before turning back to Tasha. "You guys look so, wow, the resemblance is startling." I returned her hug.

She pulled back and looked over me, her face in a huge smile. "Hey, stranger." She said.

"Hey, Tasha," I heard that voice and immediately turned around, seeing that Dimitri had made his way over to us. This Tasha lady pushed past me a little bit and moved towards Dimitri, throwing her arms around him. I raised my eyebrows and faced Dimitri, who apologetically smiled and untangled himself.

"I haven't seen you in forever, Dimka! We need to catch up!" Tasha said, standing a bit too close to him for my liking.

"Of course, Tasha." He turned to me. "Have you met my student, Rose?"

Tasha smiled. I didn't like it. "Yes, right before you graced us with your presence."

"Well, we should all take our seats, the ceremony is about to start." Dimitri said, always on time.

As Christian, Lissa and Tasha fell into step, Dimitri and I lingered behind the Moroi. "What's the deal with you and '_Tasha'?_" I asked, crossing my arms.

"She's an old friend."

"Friend my foot, did you see the way she threw herself all over you? It's clear that she wants something more than a friend." I snapped, under my breath.

"Is that jealously I hear?"

I shrugged my shoulders, like it was nothing. "I'm just looking out for you, comrade. You never know what hoe is out there trying to steal you away from your baby mama."

Dimitri laughed and stopped us, resting his hand on my shoulders. He clucked his tongue and said, "Roza, Roza, Roza, you've got nothing to worry about. I'm not going anywhere and no one is certainly going to pull me away from you. So, get those thoughts out of your beautiful head and go graduate." He smiled, a full one, and slapped my butt.

While I moved over to the seats of the graduating class, Dimitri and all the other guardians lined up on the borders of the ceremony, keeping watch. Dimitri took his place next to my mother_?_ and started chatting animatedly with her.

Weird. I shook my head and kept walking, but I was stopped. Adrian stood in front of me, looking down. "Hey, little dhampir, nice robes." He smirked and I rolled my eyes.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be passed out in your room?"

Adrian laughed. It was such a contrast to Dimitri's, but it still brought a smile to my face. "Well, I managed to sober up enough to watch my friends walk up on stage and get a piece of useless paper. I think I might've been robbed."

We continued to chat, until we were intercepted by none other than Jesse and his gang. I ignored and was able to walk about three steps before a hand was laid on my shoulder. "Hey Jesse, get you hand off my shoulder before I rip it off." I said, putting as much sugar into my voice as I could.

"Hey, Ivashkov, got a feisty one here." He said, removing his hand.

"Shut up." I grabbed Adrian's hand and pushed past them. "Go suck on it."

"I bet you did," Jesse snickered, his followers mimicking their leader. "How was it, Ivashkov? That tight little mouth-"

"Fuck off, asshole."

He ignored Adrian and turned to me. "So, Rose, I've finally figured out why you were gone for those two weeks."

"Oh yeah? Maybe its cause your face was making me sick and I had enough of it. C'mon Adrian," I said, walking away but his next words made me halt.

"Who's the daddy, Rose? Twenty bucks that it's Ivashkov. Ralf here doesn't believe me, do you Ralf?"

"That hoe wouldn't even know, she whores around so much that it could be anyone's." Jesse and Ralf laughed.

They didn't even see the fist coming at their faces. I packed as much punch as I could and god, it hurt. No matter how much their words made me want to curl up in a ball and cry, I refused to even let them see the smallest part of me affected.

As fast as my feet could take me, I walked over to the shade of the nearest tree and hid behind it. I blinked furiously, trying to stop the tears from pouring out. I was so mad, and punching their weak, brittle Moroi faces didn't help with the anger. I needed something harder, something that could crack and I wouldn't regret it.

I balled my hand up and it flew straight for the tree. I felt the pain moments after. My hand was burning as I was sure I'd broken all the bones. That pain traveled up my arm and set it on fire.

"Fuck," I whispered, clutching my arm and sinking down to the ground, leaning against the hard trunk.

"Rose," I heard Adrian's worried voice and a second later, he was kneeled beside me, grabbing my broken hand in his. I felt the magic work.

"I'm fine. Let's just get this stupid day over with."

**Hola chicos! Thank you guys for all the reviews last chapter. It's made me greedy and I want some more! :D Tell me guys what you thought, your feelings, or anything! Thanks for reading!**


	29. Chapter 29

_Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all and any VA content used. The plot is mine. _

I'd like to say that I didn't allow Jesse and his gang to get to me, but unfortunately, that was nothing but the truth. Everything dampened after our encounter and my good mood from earlier plummeted downhill. Fast. I was still fuming with rage and tried to push it out of my way but it consumed me. I fought it and worked hard to make sure that nothing came across my face. That blank face I'd been practicing finally got its use. It was extremely hard, trying to make your thoughts just disappear from your mind. It was extremely hard trying to skirt around the anger that filled me.

Concentrating on the ceremony wasn't that hard or at least I didn't think so. Part of it was that I was partially out of it. Names flew by and Moroi went up on stage, collected their diploma, and shook Kirova's hand, all while showered in an abundance of cheering and applause. That was Moroi commencement. It was as flashy as ever. The dhampirs didn't have a commencement. Instead, our small ceremony was after the Moroi one and hardly anyone stuck around for that. As quickly as Moroi arrived, they left.

Only a few stayed. There were some scattered here and there, including my Moroi: Lissa, Christian, Adrian and of course, Abe. Instead of sitting in the back rows, I moved up to the front this time, the space dictated for dhampirs. Numbly, I let Dimitri come and walk me up to my seat, which was placed alphabetically and shook off his concern for me when he saw my face, void of all emotion. I didn't know what was wrong with me but I didn't like it.

Rather than Kirova, Alberta took her place, as Head Guardian. I clapped along with the rest of my peers but unless you were really looking at me, you couldn't tell that my heart wasn't into it. I blinked my eyes, clearing my head from the black dots that were dancing spaciously along in my vision.

I felt a sharp pain in my lower abdomen and winced. It sure was strong. I moved my hand down to where one of the twins kicked. As soon as it was gone, another followed in its wake. "Ow," I whispered under my breath. I rubbed my stomach gently, soothing the pain and calming them down. I gritted my teeth as another one came.

The next one left me hissing in pain and a couple glances in my direction. I needed to get up and walk it off. Lately, I'd found that they liked walks, so often, at night, I would take a ten minute walk before bed. Luckily for me, Alberta chose that moment to call my name.

I couldn't have jumped quicker out of my chair when I heard "Rosemarie Hathaway". Not my best moment. Because I got up so fast, the blood rushed to my head which was not too good an idea since the black spots had never really disappeared. I stumbled for a second before regaining my balance, somewhat. As I walked, I noticed questioning eyes never left me and I wondered that was about. My head was still swimming and I wasn't thinking or seeing clearly.

When I walked, it felt like I was super drunk, like Adrian drunk. I was stumbling all over the place. _Maybe that why everyone was looking at me weirdly?_ I placed a hand on my forehead, having no idea how it'd stop the pounding behind my eyes. I tried to ignore it while walking up the stairs.

And suddenly, I was seeing doubles. I blinked, clearing my vision, and took deep breaths to calm my breathing. _What was happening to me?_

"Congratulations, Rose," Alberta said, grasping my hand in hers and shaking. Her voice sounded like it was miles away and I couldn't focus on her. My other hand reached out to grab my diploma. I missed and almost fell to the floor.

"Rose? Rose?" I heard Alberta call my name, it was fuzzy and there were multiples. "Rose, are you alright? Rose, can you hear me?"

I raised my lowered head up to look at Alberta. My eyes went wide and this time, I did fall to the floor, everything turning black.

**DPOV**

After the commencement and all the Moroi and their families had left, the guardians swooped in and cleared the area, only leaving a few rows for the graduating dhampirs. I took this chance to walk over to Rose, who'd been looking pretty damper throughout the ceremony.

As I moved over to her, I took the time to study her. She was truly magnificent, taking my breath away every time I looked at her. Tonight, with her deviled looks, drove me over the edge, her sexiness taunting me. Those call me red lips were whispering my name and my fingers were itching to run through those locks that were left down framing her face.

"Roza," she looked up at me, surprise that I'd caught her off guard. I placed a hand on her lower back and gently pulled her along. "You alright?"

She nodded, it was almost mechanically. Rose made no attempt to speak as we continued on our way to the front. And that's when I knew something was wrong. Her eyes held misery and her silence was deafening. When we got to her seat, she mumbled a quiet thanks and sat down.

I kept watching her, concerned whenever her face morphed into one of pain. I saw her rub her stomach and figured one of the twins kicked. Every night when Rose was fast asleep, I'd kneel down as slowly stroke her bump, whispering words of love to my children in my native tongue. Sometimes, I'd feel them kick in response, most of the time, they'd just move around.

I saw Rose squeeze her eyes shut and press a hand to her forehead. When Alberta called her name, she jumped up like lightning and made her way over to the stage. She wobbled and stumbled, losing her balance a little before shaking hands and receiving her diploma.

As Alberta congratulated Rose, she didn't look like she was there. Rose looked like she was being sucked into Lissa's head but it was different. She stumbled, her legs shaking. I heard Alberta ask her if she was alright and that's when I started walking.

* * *

**RPOV**

I squeezed my eyes shut and then opened them. Blinking a few times and clearing my vision, a white tiled ceiling came into view. Looking down, I saw myself in the worst possible situation. I was lying in a hospital bed.

I groaned, or at least tried to. My throat was dry as hell, so I settled for an eye roll. I sat up slightly and looked around the room. Like the ceiling, the walls were an off white and space was bare, save for the side table beside the bed and the not so comfortable looking chair across the room. The room was also private, which wasn't normal for the clinic.

Like the chair across the room, a similar one that resembled it was placed on my right side and in it, sat none other than Dimitri. He was bent forwards, sleeping, and his hair in disarray. I took the hand he was not gripping and stroked it back, calming the messy strands.

I smiled when I saw his eyes open to reveal those beautiful brown irises. My hand ran down the side of his cheek and using my thumb, I rubbed soothing circles. "Comrade?"

"Roza, you're awake." He smiled. "I'll go call the doctor."

"Not yet, comrade. Stay for a second." I said, taking both his hands in mine. "Why am I in here?"

His eyebrows bushed up. "You don't remember?" I shook my head. "You fainted, Roza."

My eyes widened. "When?"

"When you went up to get your diploma from Alberta."

"In front of all those people?" I groaned. "What else happened?"

"I don't know, you tell me." Dimitri laced his fingers with mine, squeezing gently.

"I don't remember." I mumbled dejectedly after a few seconds.

Dimitri looked at me, his eyes pleading. "Try, Roza." He encouraged.

I nodded and tried, but I just couldn't. Dimitri sighed, giving me a soft smile, and got up. Minutes later, Dr. Olendzki came into the room, Dimitri following.

"How are you doing, Rose?" She asked.

"Like I just got hit in the head with a pile of bricks. My head hurts and I can't remember anything, it's…blank."

"That's perfectly normal, considering what happened. Other than some temporary memory loss, you're got a clean bill of health, Rose. Once you're up to it, you're good to go."

"The twins, are the good?" I asked.

"Perfectly fine."

"When should she be starting to remember?" I heard Dimitri ask.

"In a few minutes, really. If she doesn't by the end of the day, I advise that you should bring her back. It might be more serious than I thought."

"Alrighty then!" They both turned to look at me. I shrugged my shoulders. "Comrade, I'm just about ready to blow this joint."

Dr. Olendzki laughed and Dimitri smiled wholeheartedly. "Okay, Roza."

* * *

"I still can't believe that I fainted in front of all those people! That's so embarrassing!" I threw my arm over my eyes and fell back on the bed.

Lissa laughed and I glared at her, effectively shutting her up. "Rose, seriously, shut up. But hey, at least you know that no one is going to forget who Rose Hathaway is." She laughed again and I threw at pillow at her.

"Haha very funny."

Apparently, after I fainted, everyone went into a state of shock. Alberta, thankfully, caught me before I landed on the floor and Dimitri came rushing into action. Without a moment to doubt, he scooped me up in his arms and ran to the clinic like his pants were on fire.

It took a few minutes, but everything went back to normal and graduation picked up where it left off. Well, that's how it happened according to Lissa. She wanted to come with me but guardians wouldn't let her, saying Dimitri had it covered and they didn't need to involve Moroi. It was bull.

Apparently my fainting had put a damper on Abe's plans. He supposedly was throwing a graduation party in my honor after the ceremony. That never happened. He called it off and the Badicas' threw an unplanned party in spur of the moment. Right now, everyone was in the woods getting drunk off their asses.

Well, except for Lissa and Christian. Lissa was in the cabin bedroom with me and Christian was outside in the living room doing who the hell knows. I think his only reason for being here was that he didn't know what to do without Lissa around. Though, I think Dimitri was out there making lasagna 'cause I said I was hungry about an hour ago.

"Can I? You know…?" Lissa was biting her lip. I rolled my eyes and she squealed. I lifted up my shirt, revealing my bump and immediately Lissa put her long and skinny fingers on it. I hummed in content when I felt the babies move around.

"So…you really don't remember?"

"I really wish I did. Dimitri's been checking up on me every half an hour, hoping that I'd remember something. Poor guy. But all I can recall is the blackout."

Lissa frowned. When my stomach rumbled, she looked up at me in confusion.

I smiled. "Dimitri!" I called.

A few seconds later, I heard a 'yes?' and replied, "I'm hungry!"

I didn't hear a response so I decided to go to the kitchen with Lissa following. "Oh my god, that smells so good, comrade." I moaned.

"Watch it, Rose. I think you have some drool coming out the side of your mouth." Christian smirked and I slapped him upside the head. "Ow!"

I left Lissa sitting at the island on a bar stool with Christian and started setting the table. Dimitri set the casserole dish in the middle as well a huge salad bowl. I walked into his opened arms and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too, Roza." My lips wandered back to his and I don't think we would've stopped if it wasn't for my stomach. Dimitri laughed. "I think we should go eat," he pecked my nose and pulled out my chair for me and then pushing me in once I was settled down.

Lissa sat on my right, Dimitri sat on my left and Christian sat in front of me. "Comrade?" I said, holding up the wine glass.

"Try it." I raised my brow at him. "Roza, you'd really think I'd give you alcohol while you're pregnant?"

It wasn't actual wine. Just sparkling grape juice. Dimitri cut a slice of lasagna for me and placed it in my plate and did the same for him. Christian did the same for Lissa and himself.

Lissa raised her glass, "I'd like to make a toast. To us, may this be the first family night of many!"

I brought the glass to my lips and sipped. I looked around the table seeing Lissa delicately eating her lasagna, laughing with Christian and Dimitri, Dimitri's hand in mine across the table and him smiling down on me.

I could see this for the rest of my life. I picked up my fork, spearing a piece of this no doubt delicious pasta. As I brought it up to me mouth, something went through me, like a rush. I gasped, holding a hand to my chest.

"Oh my God," I whispered… and the fork clambered to the floor, landing with a loud clank…

**A/N- Hey Guys! Sorry I been away for so long! School has been kicking my ass! Hope this chapter made up for it though! Leave me some reviews on your way out!  
**


	30. Chapter 30

**AN- Hey guys! It's been a while, huh? I'm very sorry for that but I hope this chapter made up for the long wait. **

**I just wanna thank my beta real quick, because without her, this chapter wouldn't be up here like this. So thank you!**

**DPOV **

"Rose!"

Her hands slammed down on the top of the table, eyes growing wide. She looked like she was in a suspended state of shock, and she wasn't responding to her name being called. I reached across and took one of her hands in mine, squeezing gently.

"Rose...Rose, are you in there?" Lissa snapped her fingers in front of Rose's face, trying to get her attention.

I felt Rose grip my hand tighter and immediately looked up to meet her blinking eyes.

"Lissa! Will you stop doing that in my face?" Rose swatted Lissa's hand away and rolled her eyes. "You all can stop worrying about me now." She bent down to pick up her fork, and excused herself to quickly get a new one. Lissa and Christian resumed eating, and I managed to eat a couple bites before I had this nagging feeling in the bottom of my stomach that something was wrong.

Standing up, I threw my napkin on the table and excused myself. I found Rose in the kitchen, leaning over the sink. I walked up to her and touched her shoulder.

She jumped and turned around defensively. "Oh, comrade, it's you." She then looked away quickly and brought her sleeve up to her face, drying the tears that she had there before I could see them. I watched her hand travel to her abdomen, rubbing circles into the swelling bump. She shook her head and sniffled. "It was so scary, comrade."

"What was it?" I asked, taking her into my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck instinctively and rested her head on my chest.

"I think it was a vision." She looked up at me. "I think it's one of them doing it."

I closed my eyes and sighed deeply. "Dimitri?" Rose had her hand on my cheek, gently stroking it. I may have leaned into her touch. "What's wrong?"

"It's just...I can fathom all this. It's...I just can't. Honestly, it's freaking me out. How can these," I placed a hand on her stomach, "do this?" my gaze flicked back up to her distressed face.

"I don't know. Nobody does. And yeah, it's freaking me out too, a lot. But we need to find out what's going on." She said.

I took a deep breath, nodding. "What did you see?"

I saw a small smile come over Rose's lips. "I saw an old building. Inside were all these books and papers. I don't know what or where it is but we need to find it. It could be important to our search and..."

After a few seconds of her talking, I tuned Rose out. My mind was spinning and I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about all of this – it was just all too much right now and I felt like I was suffocating.

"Stop. Rose, stop." I said, pushing her off me. I moved away and walked to the other side of the counter. I was too absorbed in my own anger and confusion to notice that she wore a face of pain.

My fingers weaved through my hair and pulled at the roots, as if to pull out all the madness. I growled out in frustration.

"Dimitri, are you okay?" Rose's voice was quiet and wavering.

I didn't answer her: I felt the kick I had landed on one of the cupboards was sufficient enough. "No, Rose, I am not. I just- I need a break."

I knew I needed to get out and cool down somewhere else before I lost my temper in front of Rose and I did something I would regret. "Please apologize to our guests for me. I'll see you later."

**RPOV**

He left, just like that. I heard the front door slam shut and it took a few moments for it to sink in before the tears started falling.

"Rose?" I looked up to see Lissa beside me. "What happened, honey?"

"It's nothing," I said, trying to convince myself more than her. Maybe if I said it then I'd believe it, but I knew deep down that everything was wrong. I wiped my eyes with the corner of my sleeve and composed myself. "It's nothing," I tried for a smile. "Really. Come on, let's go finish dinner."

I stepped forward but Lissa's hand on my arm pulled me back. "Rose," she said quietly but firmly. "It is not _nothing._ I can see it in your eyes, not to mention up here," Lissa pointed to her head.

My heart sank. "Did you- did you see everything that happened? Please tell me you didn't, I'm begging you Liss, " I asked her, hoping the answer would be no.

Lissa nodded regretfully. I looked down and painfully smiled, trying to hold back the sobs. It was inevitable though and Lissa wrapped her arms around my shaking body, whispering and reassuring me that it'd be alright and everything would work out in the end.

I knew Dimitri was acting irrationally and it wasn't that he was angry at me. He was angry at our situation and that no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't prevent anything from happening. He was dealing with his inner demons all by himself and I knew he was hurting. I only wished that he'd stayed and would open up to me.

I was so sad that not even I could break down those walls, and that after all this time, they weren't down yet. I honestly thought we were making progress and I was breaking Dimitri out of that shell. I wished he'd just talk to me. I mean, we were going through the same thing for God's sake! If wasn't like I didn't know how he felt.

I pulled away from Lissa, "I'll be alright once he comes back. He just needs to cool down for a while. It's getting to him and I'm afraid he'll hit his breaking point soon and do something he will regret."

"Rose…" she began.

"I know, Liss. I'll be fine. I hate to do this, but do you mind if I go lie down?" I asked.

Lissa smiled softly and let it go. "I'll tuck you in."

* * *

I was only sleeping for a short while when I was woken up by a rustling noise. I sat up in the bed, watching his figure move around the room, pacing. I reached over to the bedside table and turned on the lamp.

"Dimitri?" He turned around, startled. My heart broke in two at what I saw. "Dimitri…what happened?"

He looked down at his bloodied hands, the knuckles popping out in alarming angles. Not seeming to be fazed by it, he lowered them to his side, his hands clenching and unclenching in fists. That had to hurt.

"Dimitri?" I asked once more. His eyes moved up until he was focused on my face. He set his jaw straight, his teeth were pressed together so tight that I could see them through his skin. I saw something flash through his eyes and not a moment later was I sliding the blanket off and in front of him.

I raised my hand to his cheek, stroking the softness of his cheek. "Please," I said quietly. "Talk to me."

Dimitri lowered his gaze. "No," I pulled his chin back up. "I'm up here." I stepped closer and rested a hand on his chest. One of his hands covered mine. Why wouldn't he just talk to me? That's why I was here.

"Dimitri, please, talk to me. I'm right here," I said, choking up. "Why won't you talk to me?"

"I know," he whispered. He squeezed his eyes shut but I saw the tears. I saw the big, fat droplets roll down his cheeks, I saw it all.

And suddenly, Dimitri was on his knees, slumped over, head hanging in what seemed like shame. "I'm such a coward, Rose." He said shakily. "How could you ever stand a man like me?"

"Because I love you," I ran my fingers through Dimitri's mangled hair and pulled him close to my chest. "Because I love you." I said again.

He looked up at me and it pained me to see the glistening wet trails along his cheeks. I brought my thumbs up and wiped them away. "I don't deserve your love; you are too good for me."

"Yes you do, you absolutely do. There is no one I'd rather give it to than the man who makes me happy just by loving me. That's you, Dimitri, no one else." I bent down and gave him a slow kiss.

"I love you, comrade. I always will, and I'll keep telling you until you believe it, and after." I smiled.

Dimitri brought his hand up to my cheek, and I unconsciously leaned in. his thumb brushed my lip and I couldn't help but kiss it. He smiled a little, a start. "And even though I don't deserve you, I will always love you, Roza."

Dimitri wrapped his arms around my waist, and pulled me close to him. I decided not to push it for now, I'd let him tell me when he was ready. I didn't doubt that he wouldn't.

I didn't have to wait long because seconds later, he whispered, "I'm so tired, Rose. I'm tired of putting on a brave face for everyone. I'm tired of not knowing what's going to happen to these two," Dimitri moved a hand on my stomach. "I'm _so_ tired of being scared all the time and just having no idea what to do."

"I know, comrade, I know." I soothed, running my fingers through his long, silky hair. "I feel the exact same way, except it's ten times worse because even though they're _inside _of me, I don't know _how _to protect them." I confessed sorrowfully, my stroking slowing a little.

Dimitri looked up at me with eyes wide in love and determination. "I'm going to try my hardest, Roza, I promise with all my heart."

"That's all I'll ever ask." I said, pulling Dimitri off the ground, "Come on, let's go get you cleaned up."

I took him to the adjoining washroom and told him to sit on the closed toilet seat. I helped him out of his shirt, and discarded it in the hamper. Judging from the raised eyebrow on Dimitri's face, he guessed my real motive for taking his shirt off: it'd been too _way _long since I'd seen him half naked, let alone fully.

Opening the medicine cabinet over the sink, I grabbed the bottle of hydrogen peroxide and some bandages. "This is going to sting like a be-otch, comrade," I warned him. Dimitri chuckled and held his hands out to me. I put some of the peroxide onto a cotton ball and wiped the cuts and gashes that covered his hands.

I heard his sharp intake of breath and laughed when he glared at me. As soon as I was done there, I wrapped the bandages tightly around the wounds. "There's nothing I can do about the broken bones and I don't want to risk breaking them further by breaking them back into place. We'll get Lissa or Adrian to heal them tomorrow."

Dimitri nodded. I kissed his cheek and went to put away everything that I used, making sure to clean, discard and put away things properly. As I was busy bustling around, Dimitri's low voice caught my attention.

"Rose, I'm sorry." I turned to face him, frowning a little before he continued. "I'm sorry for losing my temper in front of you like that, and I'm sorry for leaving."

"It's okay, I understand." In honesty, I didn't really, but he didn't need to know that yet. I offered him a soft smile and we got ready to go to bed (or back to bed in my case). I slid into his comforting arms and snuggled closer to his chest, relishing the sensation. Sure, we had made mistakes today and yesterday and the day before that, but we would always love each other unconditionally and for me, that was enough.

**So how did I do? I was pretty proud of this but I'm not sure about Dimitri's POV. If anyone has any advice or constructive criticism for me, I'd love to hear it! **

**Love you guys!**


	31. Chapter 31

**Hey guys! I present you with Chapter 31! Hope you guys will like!**

**RPOV**

"Hey, Dr. O," I said, knocking on her office door.

She looked up from underneath her glasses and smiled when she saw me. "Rose, what can I do for you?" She said warmly.

"Well, I know my appointment isn't for two more days but I was hoping that I could bump it up to now?" I asked, hoping it was possible.

"No problem, Rose. Let's go to the room." She got up from her desk chair and led the way to the room I always went to. I hopped up on the bed and raised my shirt until it was underneath my breasts and waited as she set up the equipment and got everything ready.

"Okay, Rose, this is going to be a bit cold."

I smiled at her warning. No matter how many times she told me, I still flinched at the coolness of the substance when it came in contact with my skin. In a matter of minutes, Dr. O was putting away her equipment and I was cleaning myself up. I received a clean bill of health and was excited to hear that I was only 26 weeks along. I thanked her and after discussing the plan for the next three weeks, I left and headed back, texting Lissa quickly that everything was a go.

Since it was such a nice day today, I decided to take the route through the courtyard to feel the warm breeze. It was just getting dark and it was the hustle and bustle time of the day. Everyone, Moroi and dhampir alike were running around carrying boxes and getting things in order for tomorrow's departure from St. Vlad's for the graduating students and the summer break for everyone else.

I still had to get my dorm room all packed up. I turned right when I got to the courtyard and headed towards the dhampir dorms. Outside, I noticed an abundance of cardboard boxes. Grabbing two, I headed down the left corridor until I stopped in front of my old room.

I pulled the key out of my pocket and turned it in the handle, and immediately was bombarded by the memories the room held. I placed the boxes by the door and moved to go sit on the bed, which was still in its unmade state.

I looked around the room and everything my eyes landed on seemed to hold a memory that I flashed back to. I smiled at the numerous times Lissa and I shared jokes and had 'illegal' sleepovers. I looked at the bed head, and saw myself telling Lissa about Dimitri. I saw the gym bag in the corner, and remembered that day when puked nonstop and Dimitri found me in the church after I got kicked out of Stan's class. The linen closet, when I changed the sheets after telling Dimitri to go wash off his aftershave because the smell made me nauseous. My eyes landed on the mirror, and I remembered the first time I saw my baby bump. I smiled and felt the twins kick, as if they were sharing my happiness with me.

I sighed and after one last scan, I got up, ready to start my packing. With no real plan, I just threw whatever I could find into whatever box was closest to me. Clothes and jewellery got tangled up, mixed in with frames and decorative pieces. I was almost done when I heard a knock on the opened door.

I turned around to find Lissa standing in the doorway. "Is Dimitri on his shift?"

"Yeah, he shouldn't be finished for the next couple hours." I said. "Everything ready?"

"Everything but you." She looked at me pointedly and I grinned. "I finished your packing in the cabin earlier today. It's loaded in the car and waiting."

"Thanks, Lissa, you're a life saver. Okay, let me just finish up here and we can go. Is anyone else coming with us?"

"Just Eddie and Mason, I think." Lissa sat on my now stripped bed and watched me as I hustled around the room.

"Ok, done. Let's go." I left the key on the desk and texted Dimitri to ask him if he could them up for me. Grabbing Lissa's hand, I pulled her out the door and ran almost excitedly to the front gates.

* * *

**DPOV**

I rubbed my eyes for the millionth time to try and keep myself awake. Last night had been pretty rough...and that was an understatement in itself.

After Rose had patched me up, we had gone to bed at two in the Moroi morning and consequently, I had to be up at six for my shift. When I woke up four hours later, Rose was over to her side of this bed, as far away from me as possible.

I rolled out of bed, feeling the hole in my chest get bigger. I got ready quickly and downed some coffee, going back into our bedroom to tell Rose I was leaving. When I tried to give her a goodbye kiss, she turned her face ever so slightly and my lips landed on her cheek instead.

I wasn't naive enough to know something wasn't right; it was far from it. I whispered in her ear that, "I'm leaving now," and she shot straight out of bed, eyes wide.

She looked at me and started...crying? Not that I couldn't blame her behaviour, but this certainly was odd. She grasped my hand and held it close to her chest.

"Roza, what's wrong?" I asked, worried.

"Please don't leave. Please don't leave me again," she whispered feebly.

My heart plummeted and I dropped to my knees. "Oh god, Roza."

"Please," she begged. "Not a third time."

"I'm so sorry, milaya; I never meant to make you think that. You have to understand though I only left last night because I didn't want to lose my temper in front of you and do something I would regret. I didn't want to become my father."

She gasped and covered her mouth, a sob escaping. "I-I..."

"It's alright, Roza. But I promise you, I won't ever leave again. I'll stay and talk to you. I'll try to not blow up." She smiled a little at the last part and allowed me to kiss her. "I hope my word still means something to you."

"Of course it does, comrade. I know you'd never intentionally lie to me. Or at least I'd hope so."

"Never and always," I said, answering both her questions.

Leaning in close, I pressed my lips to Rose's, feeling her respond right away. Her arms wrapped around my neck and her nimble fingers pulled my hair tie out, causing the strands to let loose. Grudgingly, I pulled back a few seconds later, breathing heavily. "It's just a shift. I'll be back in a couple of hours." I whispered against Rose's mouth.

After a kiss on the corner of my mouth and her nodding, she let me go and I left to report to Alberta.

I sat in the booth by the front gates, my fingers drumming lazily against the desk. Checking my watch, I noticed I still had three hours left until I could leave. Feeling a yawn come up, I tried to stifle it back down but it came out anyways. The guardian across from me on the left side of the gates smiled knowingly, the time passing as slowly there as it was here.

I'd already finished all my paperwork, which really wasn't anything. I sat there bored out of my mind with nothing to do. I didn't even have a book in my duster pocket which was a rare occurrence for me; I took it out two nights ago because I'd finished it.

But just for humour's sake, I checked anyways.

I was pleasantly surprised when I felt a fresh, new book come out, the spine still un-cracked. It was a brand new western, one I hadn't read before after a quick look at the summary at the back, and of course, the cover.

Turning to the first page, a piece of paper fell out and onto the ground. I bent down to pick it up, which wasn't easy due to the confinement of the box and the size of me. When I opened it, I smiled a little. It was Rose's handwriting and it read, _'Dear, comrade, figured you'd get bored eventually though I have no idea how this can cure it. Love, Roza'._

She'd even signed it with the nickname I called her. I set an internal reminder to make sure to thank her when I saw her later. Shaking my head, I started reading.

I was around page 156 when my radio started to crackle, and Alberta's voice came through. "Belikov, I need you to report to the junior male Moroi dorms. There's a problem that needs sorting out. Over."

At least I was getting some action; my partner didn't on the other hand. I grabbed my coat and put the book inside, and left my post.

It turns out it was just a few boys fighting over something or another. I left them with a strict warning. Rose always said that I should be nicer when disciplining; I should tone it done a bit since everyone already feared me. Being nice didn't get you what you wanted. After I told her that, the case was closed and she didn't want to talk anymore.

Finally, it was time for me to retire for the day. I walked to the cabin, ready to pack up all of Rose's and my stuff since we were leaving tomorrow morning. We'd decided to stay an extra night to save the stress of moving and driving all night to get to Court. I opened the door, surprised to see many cardboard boxes set in the living room, and the kitchen which was completely packed up.

"Rose? Roza?" I called out as I took off my jacket and shoes. When I didn't hear a response, I tried again. "Rose?" She wasn't in the living room or the bedroom.

Since she wasn't here, I thought she might've been with Lissa. Not wanting to bother her, I started finishing what Rose had started, beginning with the living room and making my way to the bathroom until the bedroom was the only place left. After two hours, Rose still wasn't back and I tried not to be that overprotective father-like-boyfriend, but I couldn't help it because I hadn't heard from her all day, except for the text where she asked me to bring her stuff from her dorm room here.

It took me another two hours and five boxes to get the bed stripped of everything except the bed. I sighed and sat down, something on the back of the door catching my attention. Once again, it was another piece of paper signed from Rose. This time, it read, _"Comrade, thanks for cleaning up everything! I bet you're probably wondering where I am, huh? Well, you'll find me at the clinic, I had a check-up with Dr. O. See you there!" _

Something was fishy. Rose probably wrote the note earlier in the day and knew that she'd had to wait hours before I found this note. She wouldn't be at the clinic for hours...But knowing Rose, this was probably one of her games she had in store for me.

So I did the best thing a man could do in my shoes. I played smart, followed Rose's directions and headed to the clinic.

As I was walking, I couldn't help but overhear the gossip circling the school. Teenagers. I honestly didn't understand them, I was never like that. I slowed down my pace, blaming it on my curiosity.

"It was only a matter of time, I mean, everyone knows she's such a huge slut."

"I bet it was that Ivashkov guy, they seemed pretty friendly the other day."

"Honestly, it's such a shame." A laugh. "Everyone's always saying what great potential she has, but if you ask me, I think she has great potential to become a baby mama."

"I don't know why she just doesn't go live in a commune. Everyone already knows she's a bloodwhore."

I couldn't take it anymore. I knew they were talking about Rose and it angered me to hear people say those things about her. My fists clenched and I had to fight hard to refuse the urge to go to these girls and...do...something.

But I had to do something. I cleared my throat, letting the Moroi know I was behind them.

"Now, you listen here girls, I don't want to ever hear you talking about someone like that again." I hissed out.

"S-sorry, Guardian Belikov, it won't happen again. We pr-promise." One said, her voice shaking.

"I better not hear this ever again. Understood?" They all shook their heads cowardly.

I glared at them as I left and headed back on course, trying to get my anger under control when I reached the clinic. When I arrived there, one of the blonde receptionists was closing up.

"Wait," I called out. She turned around, saw me, and a huge smile came across her face.

"What can I do for you, Guardian Belikov?"

"I need to get in there." I said.

She looked at a loss. She bit her lip, deciding whether or not she would let me in until I said, "I have an appointment with Dr. Olendzki. She said to come after hours."

"I guess I can let you in then. Okay, you can go but the doors will lock when you get inside and they won't open back up if you go out then decide to come back in."

"That's fine. Thank you so much." I went inside and found Dr. Olendzki.

"Dimitri, what can I do for you?"

"Is Rose still here?" I asked.

"No, she's not." She frowned. "She was here earlier for a check-up and left pretty quickly after that."

"Do you have any idea where she might be then?"

"No, but she told me if you came here to give you this," she pulled out an envelope from her drawer and handed it to me.

Without hesitation, I opened it up to see a sonogram of our babies. They were growing bigger and bigger by the day and I couldn't wait to meet them. They were something special, and I would never let any harm come to them. As I looked at the picture, it reinforced the fact that what I did last night was unacceptable.

Looking at them, I wasn't scared. They didn't scare me, and whatever they turned out to be, I knew I would love them with everything I had in me.

"I think there's something on the back you might want to check out, Dimitri." Dr. Olendzki said, amusement lacing her voice. I frowned and flipped the card over at her recommendation and wasn't at all surprised to find another note from Rose.

_Comrade, aren't they adorable? I can't wait for them to get here! Adrian has your next clue! See you in a bit! I love you!_

I sighed but couldn't help the smile. I guess I knew where I was going next…


	32. Chapter 32

**Hey Guys! I present to you, Chapter 32! Sorry for the long wait; hope you guys will like it! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy**

DPOV

I grimaced at the smell of clove cigarettes and the sight of a half drunk bottle of vodka on the table as I entered the room. _How could someone live like this_? I rolled my eyes and followed Adrian into the kitchenette. Fortunately for me, the smell of smoke was significantly less in here and, upon seeing my relief, Adrian gave me a look.

"Hey, what I do with my life is what I do and if you don't like it, then you should get out." He grumbled.

I put up my hands in defence, "just here to get what Rose sent me to get. Then I'm out of here as fast as I can get."

Adrian had his back to me when he responded. "You know, Belikov, Rose told me about what you did. I'd have to say it's pretty unacceptable and if I were Rose, I wouldn't have forgiven you that fast.

"Well then, I'm glad you're not Rose." I fought hard to keep myself from pinning him against the wall. "And I know what I did was unacceptable, it won't happen again."

Adrian walled back over to the front door and picked up an envelope on the table. He held it in his hands and ran his fingers over the edges while looking at me. "It better not happen again. I'll let it slide this time because Rose asked me to, but don't count your blessings."

I inhaled sharply. Who did he think he was? It wasn't like he was Rose's father to get a say in our personal matters. "Stay out of our business, Ivashkov, this has nothing to do with you so don't get involved in places where you don't need to be."

Before I lost my temper, I grabbed the note I knew was for me out of his hands and left. I walked away from guest housing and ripped open the envelope, pulling out a note that said, "_Comrade! You didn't kill him! Remember our first practice?" _

"Roza, Roza, Roza," I muttered as I made my way to the gym. I opened the doors and scanned the room, my eyes landing on a slip of paper sticking out from the practice dummies.

Pulling it out, I read, _"Only two more clues to go! Give this to Alberta!" _

I sighed and smiled. She really was sending me on a wild goose chase. Shaking my head, I stuffed the most recent note in my duster pocket along with the others and arrived at the Head Guardian's office in no time. I knocked on the door and entered when I heard Alberta voice.

"Dimitri," she said, looking up from her desk, "just doing some last minute paperwork before the summer break. Oh, that reminds me, did your papers go through?"

"Yes, last night actually. But that's not why I came here."

"What can I do for you, then, Guardian Belikov?" She asked inquisitively, placing the papers down on her desk.

I pulled out the note and slid it over to Alberta. A small smile came across her lips when she tried to hide it. "I believe you have something for me?"

"I do." She handed me a black cloth and ear mufflers. I took them, confusedly, and held them, not knowing what to do. Alberta looked at my dumbfounded state and started laughing. "I took you as smarter than that, Guardian Belikov. You have to put them on."

"Put them on?" I asked, not believing what I was hearing.

Alberta nodded. "Those were Rose's instructions. You are to put those on and I am to lead you to your next clue."

I frowned. "She better be ready for when I find her." I exhaled loudly and wrapped the blindfold around my eyes and put on the ear mufflers.

"Ready, Belikov?"

"As much as I'll ever be." Alberta placed her hand on my back and pushed lightly, motioning to move forward.

With the two most vital senses taken away from me, I felt vulnerable, something I've never felt. I was blind, and deaf. It was torture. I felt naked, exposed, something a guardian should never feel. I couldn't hear, I couldn't see.

Rose was going to pay for this when I found her. I hope she was ready.

But I still did have smell and touch, and of course my mind, which I planned to exploit. I smelt…gasoline? That was different. I figured we must be by the garage? Alberta placed my hand on a railing and I felt cool metal. Then one of my legs were lifted, and the other one, until I realized we were walking up steps. I quickly took the lead and walked the few paces.

Alberta then resumed her lead and pushed me down into a seat. I ran my fingers over the sides and felt that similar cool metal fencing in the plush down that I was sitting on. The smell was kind of…neutral, except for the gas.

A slip of paper slid into my hands. A pat on the shoulder. Then turbulence. And weightlessness. I sat up straight and held onto the sides for dear life. My heart was racing, and then my ears were popping.

"Oh God, Roza." I was on a damn freaking airplane. I smiled and bit my lip, my eyebrows rising in disbelief. She was _so _going to get it. It wasn't even funny. I drummed my fingers nervously on the hand rest, trying to figure out what her game was.

About 15 minutes into the flight, I felt a tap on my shoulder and hands over my ears, removing the mufflers. "Guardian Belikov, you may remove your blindfold now." He didn't even finish before I had it off and was chucking it to the other side of the plane.

"How long do we have until arrival?" I asked the flight attendant. "Approximately 8 hours. Since this is a private flight, we don't have any layovers or stops. Can I get you anything from the cart?" She asked.

I sighed and rubbed the side of my face. "No, but could you tell me where our destination is?"

She smiled. "Sorry, Guardian Belikov, that's secret information. Are you sure you don't want anything off the cart?"

Exhaling, I said, "I'll take two shots of Russian vodka, thank you." She poured the liquid into the two glasses and handed them to me.

I downed them both in a matter of seconds and looked back at the attendant. "Could I have two more of those?" I downed those two faster than the first, none having an effect on me. Leaning back into the chair, I closed my eyes and tried to relax the tension coursing through my body. And from not seeing Rose, and not knowing where she was.

It felt like only minutes before I opened my eyes at the sound of a voice calling my name. "Mr. Belikov?" I turned my head to see the co-pilot, or who I assumed was the co-pilot, who was trying to grab my attention.

"We're about to land in ten minutes. This is for you." He handed me a piece of paper and I groaned, knowing what it was. His brow furrowed and he looked confused.

"It's nothing," I said, waving the paper. "My girlfriend's sending me on a wild goose chase. A scavenger hunt to find her."

"I see. Well, good luck, sir." He excused himself and returned to the cockpit, getting ready to land. I unfolded the paper to find an address written inside in Rose's handwriting. There was the street, and also the name, which seemed to be a hotel. But I still didn't know where I was. Was I still in an American city? What if I was in a different country?

* * *

I was in London. As in London, _England_. This was just great. Now don't get me wrong, London was a great city. Bustling with energy and beautiful scenery. It just wasn't where I expected to be; I wasn't sure where I was supposed to be, period.

I hailed a cab down and climbed in the back, rolling my eyes when I had to fold me legs to fit. I showed the address to the driver and asked if he knew where it was. Luckily for me, he did, and it was only 20 minutes away. 20 minutes before I would see my Roza again.

"Thank you," I said, climbing out, and handing him the cash. I only had American on me so I just gave him a couple bills, hoping it would be enough. If I stayed here longer, I'd have to get some changed into pounds.

It was a beautiful hotel, inside and out. I nodded to the doorman as I walked through the revolving doors and stepped into the lobby. Across the space people of all walks and races sat, enjoying a drink, reading the paper or talking. I quickly scanned it, seeing if Rose was here. When I didn't see her, I turned around and started towards the front desk, until I heard something that made me immediately stop in my tracks.

"Comrade, don't recognize me?"

Spinning around, I saw a newspaper lower and smirking lips come into view. Lips that I knew very well. She put down the paper on the table, and crossed her legs, batting her eyes at me.

I grinned and rushed over to her, catching her when she jumped into my arms, squealing with delight. I put her down and she leaned up, capturing my lips with hers.

When she pulled back, Rose keep her arms wrapped around my neck and I put her down gently, keeping my arms around her waist. "Miss me?" She smiled.

"Very much so," I said. "Don't you ever dare do that to me again," I breathed: the relief clear in my voice.

Rose laughed. "Oh, comrade, I love you very much."

"And I love you as well." She rested her head on my chest and my hand migrated to her abdomen. "How are they doing?"

"Good. A few kicks here and there, nothing out of the ordinary. But then again, nothing is ever ordinary," she snorted. "How'd you like my little scavenger hunt?"

"That's a hard one," I sighed pretending to think hard, and she slapped my chest. I rolled my eyes and answered her question. "It was nice. You really kept me on my toes. Though I was about ready to kill you when Alberta handed me the blindfold and ear mufflers."

"I thought those would be a special addition, you know? Make it all the more interesting." She beamed. "I knew you'd be out of your mind without your sense of sight or hearing."

"Well you were right. But why Britain?" I asked.

"Ssh, comrade," she said, putting a finger up to my lips. "All in due time. Now, let's say we hit the shops? Lissa said that they're to die for!" I shook my head at her evasiveness but followed all the same as she took the lead.

* * *

It was nearing the human night as we returned back to the hotel where I found Rose. "Ugh, comrade, my feet are killing me."

I chuckled. "Walking for four hours straight can do that to you."

Rose glared at me and pressed the elevator button while I shuffled the tens of bags I was holding in my hands. When we heard a ding, and the doors opened, an old couple stood in the car. They were holding hands and smiles were plastered across their faces, looking as in love as they were 50 years ago.

I felt Rose's eyes on me and I knew what she was thinking without looking at her. I was thinking it too. I wanted us to be just like that, for the rest of our lives. I wanted what that couple did, and Rose did too.

When we got to the room, Rose announced that she was going to get ready for bed. We would be staying here overnight?

"Relax, comrade." She said, coming up to me and stroking the side of my face. "This is only part one of our vacation."

Without warning, she walked away and closed the bathroom door behind her.

"Roza! What do you mean part one of our 'vacation'?" I called after her.

She poked her head out the door and winked at me. "You'll see..."

**What do we think about Rose's evasiveness? I apologize for the shortness but hopefully, the second part of this chapter will be up soon! See you all later!  
Sarah**


	33. Chapter 33

**I hope this update is a bit faster than the last couple have been! Also, I wanted to point out as two reviewers pointed out to me a last chapter, I made a mistake. Travelling from Montana to London would take far longer than 2 hours. So thank you to **born to love protect and die **and **Spirit Quartz**. I've corrected that. Also, I've done my best to figure out travel information and I apologize in advance if I mess something up. **

**Now, enjoy this long chapter! **

"Comrade, wake up," I whispered in his ear. Shaking his shoulder, I kissed him softly, trying to get him up. He mumbled something and then his hand covered mine, squeezing gently. Jeez. He was taking the whole 'day off' thing seriously. Talk about a lapse of Guardian protocol. "Time to get up, sleepy head."

His eyes fluttered open, and he blinked a few times, bringing a fist up to his eyes. "Roza? Why are you already dressed?" He had the nerve to sound suspicious of me. Me! I was almost offended, but pride won over: I loved that he knew, and accepted, my evil side.

I smiled. "It's time for breakfast. I laid out your clothes by the tub. I already packed our bags so we're ready to leave right after we eat."

"Leave where?" He asked. His low, sleepy voice rumbled through me like the purr of a lion.

I stretched out the sensation. "Uh, uh." I said, smiling. "It's still a surprise." Dimitri shook his head, smiling slightly, and got up. I slapped his ass as he did and my hand came back stinging – you could bounce a quarter off that thing, I swear! He winked and continued walking. I hopped off the bed and called after him: "I'll be downstairs in the lobby. Come down when you're ready. Oh, and bring the bags: they're by the door. I'll see you in a bit."

Closing the door behind me, I walked into the elevator and went downstairs. I moved over to the café, grabbed a couple donuts before sitting down at one of the tables. As I munched on one, I remembered Lissa's stern order as I got on the plane that she wanted me to update her whenever I had time – meaning as soon as I met up with Dimitri. But for obvious reasons, that didn't happen.

I pulled out my phone and pressed some numbers before bringing the device up to my ear. "Lissa!"

"Rose! How's Britain?"

"It's fantastic, Liss. I wish you could be here, the shopping is fantastic."

She laughed. "Has Dimitri figured it out yet?"

"Nope. He's still pretty clueless." I fell silent. "I'm nervous."

"Rose," I could hear the sigh in her voice. "There's no need to be, they're going to love you just as much as the rest of us!"

"You think so?" I asked, voice still tentative.

"Definitely." It was a few moments before I heard her again. "Oh, Rose, why aren't you using the bond?"

"What do you mean using the bond?"

"You know, like, why didn't you call me through the bond?"

I frowned. "Liss, did something hit you in the head? Hade you fed today? Do you have slight amnesia?" I asked. "Our bond is only one way."

"No, Rose. Our bond is two way now, we can communicate with each other through it. I should be asking if you're the one who has amnesia."

I waited for the punch line. She was silent. My heart leapt into my throat.

"When did this happen?" I asked, wanting to know all I could about this phenomenon.

"Well, right after you got kicked in the stomach during practice..."

My jaw dropped. "I got kicked in the stomach?! When the hell did that happen? And who the hell did it? Are they still standing?" I asked, tensing to kill someone, even if I was in a different continent.

"You really don't remember, do you? Rose, what's happening to you?" I heard her worried voice implore over the phone. "Maybe I should get on a pla-"

"Oh no you don't. Stay where you are. I'll be fine. I'm sure it's something temporary. Pregnancy Brain on steroids. Bigger babies, bigger hormones. Mo' money, 'mo problems." I sighed at whatever nonsense this was and spotted Dimitri walking my way. "I gotta go, Liss. Dimitri's coming. I love you."

"Love you too. Bye Rose."

I brought the phone down and hung up, returning it to my coat pocket. Dimitri took the seat opposite me and I pushed the bag with the donuts to him, giving him the last two. He raised an eyebrow and I answered, "What? Be glad I'm at least sharing them with you."

He chuckled and took a bite. "What are you thinking about? You're looking very…tense."

I looked up when he spoke, his voice temporarily shaking me out of the reverie I was in. "Um, nothing."

Not a minute later he said, "Roza, you're doing it again. Care to share?"

I bit my lip before nodding. "Did I ever get kicked in the stomach during practice?"

His brow furrowed and face darkened and I knew the answer was yes. "You did. Why are you asking?"

"What happened?" I asked.

He stared at me, confused, trying to figure out what was going on before answering. "It was your first practice back from taking a break after..." he looked guilty as he spoke, rubbing his neck "…after you discovered your pregnancy. I'd paired you up with Ashford and Castile and you were assigned to practice roundhouse kicks. Mason accidentally kicked you in the stomach and we got into a huge fight after, me and you." He gestured between us in case I didn't get it.

"Why?"

"Because you weren't listening to me when I told you, you had to go to the clinic right away. You kept saying you had to go to Lissa, who was coming toward the fields. Then you got mad at me because I wasn't worrying about Lissa, only you. You told me she mattered more than you no matter what because the Moroi come first and then you stormed off." He gazed at me intently, silent as he watched my mind churn.

I opened my mouth, needing to say something, but I didn't know what to say. I didn't remember any of that, but as I tried to picture it, it slowly started to come back. "Okay, thanks." I managed to say. I laughed breathlessly, feeling silly.

"Are you alright, Rose?" Dimitri asked, concerned.

"I'm fine. Really, comrade, I'm good: just a temporary mind blank."

"Okay, Rose." He resumed eating his donut. "Tell me something, Rose. Why did you go to Dr. Olendzki yesterday? Your appointment wasn't for two more days."

I bit my lip. "Well, funny story, comrade. You're going to laugh." I promised, pointing at him.

A panicked look came across his face. "Is everything alright?" He asked, reaching over to grab my pointing finger.

"Calm down, Dimitri. Everything's fine." I squeezed his hand reassuringly. "I just wanted to see how far along I was. I'm not yet into my third trimester so," I waved my hands around the air, trying to hold in my excitement.

"So?"

"Oh come on, comrade! Are you that dense?" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in exasperation. He laughed at my actions but didn't give me a response. "Oh my god, you really don't know? I thought I knew what I was getting into, comrade. You were supposed to be the smart one!" He narrowed his eyes at me and I shrugged. "Am I really going to have to spell this out for you?"

"Yes, Roza. I did not sit on an airplane for 8 hours to wait another twenty four for you to tell me what this is all about."

I huffed, disappointed. "Well, you're just going to have to wait another..." I checked my phone quickly to see what the time was, "two hours to find out."

He sighed. "Come on, let's go do something. I want to take a ride on a double decker bus!"

* * *

And that's how I spent the next two hours: On a two level red bus with my beloved's arms around me, all the time. And it was freaking great. We opted to take a riding tour where we would see the tourist attractions but not physically go in. Though on the last stop before circling back to London, I pulled Dimitri into a souvenir shop and bought souvenirs for everyone.

I proudly wore my 'Keep Calm and Carry On' shirt with the British flag as we headed into the airport. Before we got to the check in desk, I told Dimitri to stay by the waiting area while I checked us in, and gave him a stern look when he protested.

"It's still a surprise, comrade. Just wait here and I'll be back before you know it. Ten minutes, tops. Look, you can even see me all the time, okay? How often have you lectured me about patience?"

Turns out it was around half an hour before I stood before the desk attendant. I passed her the tickets I had printed two days ago and our passports. "That's an interesting destination this time of year," she said gazing down at the tickets.

"Perhaps, but it's something my boyfriend and I have been discussing forever, and this was the only time available for us both." I said, making small talk. I hated calling Dimitri my boyfriend – it sounded so childish –but I couldn't think of anything else.

"Busy lives?"

"Extremely. You don't even know the half of it."

She laughed and handed me the passports and our tickets. "At least you're making an effort, you know? Most people would leave it be." Smiling, she gave me my next instructions. "Okay, head over to that area there for check-ins. After, you'll have an hour wait before you can board. Have a safe flight."

"Thank you," I said, making my way to Dimitri. Ignoring his whining (for his own benefit) about where we were going, I led him to the check in where we had to wait in line, yet again, for another ten minutes. All we had to do was let them check our tickets and passports, and remove any liquid we were carrying, like water or shampoo.

"Uh, uh," I tsk'ed, as I snatched the tickets away from Dimitri who had reached out to take the envelope from the officer standing by the gate. "You don't get to see them, not yet."

He groaned and the officer smiled, letting us through, where we made our way to the waiting area for terminal 17. I plopped down on the seat, Dimitri beside me, and pulled out my phone, connecting to the Wifi immediately.

I had called Lissa five hours ago, and wondered if she was busy. Deciding it couldn't hurt to try I called her again, this time, through FaceTime. But then I remembered earlier when she told me we could communicate two ways through the bond. I decided to give it a test.

Tentatively, I called her name in my mind, visualizing that I was pushing the word towards her. I felt like an idiot. God, I hope no one saw me.

More so, I hoped I didn't see Christian's blinding white ass.

_'Geez, Rose, not so loud.'_

'Liss? Is that you? '

'Of course it's me, silly. Unless there's something I should know. You remembered about our bond?'

'Yes. Dimitri explained it somewhat and then I pieced it together.'

'Well I'm glad it's coming back to you. I did some research and I think I may have found what caused your memory lapse.'

'Lissa! Lead with that next time!'

She laughed in my head. The resonance made me shiver.  
_  
'It's pregnancy brain, a side effect of pregnancy. Because of all the blood rushing down to the uterus, it causes you to forget things sometimes.'  
_  
I cringed upon hearing that word. _'Ew, Liss, don't say that.'_

_'What?'_ She asked. Then I felt her realization. _'You mean uterus?'  
_  
_'Lissa! Stop!'_

'Rose, you shouldn't be disgusted by it. You're pregnant for Gods' sake! Your babies are living in your uterus!'

'Goodbye, Lissa. I'll talk to you tomorrow.'

She had me against the rails, picking at my one irrational gag-inducer. She wouldn't let up. If I couldn't win, I had to at least escape the conversation with my dignity and live to fight another day.

Unless I could win. Babies, don't fail mama now.

_'Wait, Rose! Don't cut me off li-'_

'I'm sorry, Lissa, I have to go. I'm in the shower and I think I just lost my mucous plug!'

Nothing.

'Lissa?'

Score. I turned to Dimitri and rested my head on his chest and felt his arm go around my shoulders, pulling me closer. I yawned, surprising myself. I was tired, and the soft stroking of Dimitri's fingers through my hair wasn't doing much to keep me awake; it was lulling me to sleep.

I considered Lissa's words.

I remembered reading about pregnancy brain. The whole 'baby needs the oxygenated blood more than your brain' theory made sense, especially since most people wasted half their brains on reality shows about real housewives surviving nothing if they want to be a millionaire with the X factor. I'd even experienced it: putting my keys in the freezer and the ice cream by the door as just a random example.

I hadn't had the heart to tell her it was much more, not with that asinine prophecy hanging over me.

This wasn't pregnancy brain. I had truly forgotten about the change in the link. How could I explain that to Lissa without revealing that secret? I couldn't. Time to add another secret to the load I carried.

Desperate to stay awake, I thought up a possible topic we could talk about, but before I could broach it to Dimitri, my eyes fluttered closed and my mind shut off.

It felt like I was sleeping for seconds when I woke up to the increasing and unbearable pressure on my bladder. I ignored it for a while, too comfortable in Dimitri's warm embrace to get up. But when a kick shot out, I felt like I was going to pee my pants. I threw Dimitri's arm off me and got up, quickly.

"Gotta go to the washroom, be back in a few." I didn't wait for his response as I dashed off in search of a toilet. Luckily I found one a few feet away from where we were sitting and after emptying my bladder, I left to go back to Dimitri.

On my way back, I spotted a small café and decided to go in a get some drinks. I stepped into line, right behind a woman who looked in her early 50s. She smiled at me, and I returned the gesture.

"When are you due?" She asked.

I felt my smile grow tenfold as I gently caressed my noticeable bump. "Late July, early August."

"You must be very excited," she said, her accent not English, but more of a southern drawl, indicating that she was a tourist, too.

"Very. My boyfriend and I can't wait to meet them," I said, the sentence feeling a bit weird. I stumbled over my words a bit when I said boyfriend, like I wasn't sure what to call Dimitri. He was so much more to me than just my boyfriend. I didn't like it. I shook the feeling off and ignored it, hoping it would go away. Like she could read my dark fears, her nose turned up in a disapproving 'sniff'. She looked like she smelled something unpleasant, and her eyes darted pointedly between my left ring finger – empty – and the bulge under my shirt.

"I assume you're here for the wedding?" she inquired, overly polite. She even arched her perfect brow. Where's the justice? Under my cool facade, her assumption bothered me. She was probably some awful pageant mom judging by her perfect hair and nails. I imagined her as some kind of reality show reject, shaking her finger at me while she committed every real sin ever invented.

"I am." I held my head high. "I'm just on my way to Buckingham Palace, but I'm craving a scone and some spotted dick so the guards are off fetching it for me. The queen mum is a fan of shotgun weddings, did you know?"

I heard the clerk call for the next in line, and it was my now-befuddled opponent. Before she left, she said a stunned, "congratulations to you, both".

When it was my turn, I got a hot chocolate for me and tea for Dimitri, keeping it black, the way he liked. Upon returning to the waiting area, I noticed Dimitri on the phone, engaged in conversation. He looked serious, as he always did, but a few times I would catch him with the smallest of smiles. I slowed down my pace; giving him time to continue to speak with whoever was on the other end.

As I approached him, I heard part of his conversation and I frowned at who it was.

"I look forward to it too, Tasha."

I immediately focused on fighting back the roiling black cloud of anger that surged around me. I didn't like the woman on a good day, and I couldn't stand the idea of sharing a planet with her since I'd gotten pregnant. The babies kicked and rolled, responding immediately to the shift in my mood.  
There was a quick pause. "I'll see you in a few weeks then." Over my dead... oh wait.

No. I'd have to leave some kind of letter telling him to keep her away from my babies no matter what happened to me. The thought of that woman clawing at my soul mate and my twins like some inbred, syphilitic vulture made my stomach roll. I tuned back to the conversation.

Another pause. And a laugh. "Okay, bye, Tasha."

A laugh? What did she frigging do to get a frigging laugh? That was my lover: _I_ was the mother of his first son _and_ his first daughter. If I died, history would record me as his _everything_. Even if he lost his mind and gave her a spin, she'd never be more than a convenience. Not even a second-best. That knowledge didn't make me like her more.

She better stay away from him. I could only imagine her flirting on the phone, and I did not like it. If only she knew. That woman was getting on my nerves, quickly. I didn't like her the moment I met her, and I didn't like her now. But I wasn't going to let that bother me. Mostly. Maybe a secret part of me would plan out a fantasy murder later, when I needed something to meditate on. I was still a Mazur, after all.

Even though I didn't like it, I respected the friendship that she and Dimitri had, and I trusted Dimitri, so I left the issue at rest in my mind.

"Roza, you're back," Dimitri said, looking up from the screen. I plopped own beside him and he pressed a quick kiss to my lips.

"I got you something." I handed him the cardboard cup and he smiled, bringing it to his lips and taking a long drink. As he swallowed he screwed his face up, his expression disgusted. He put the drink back into the gray cardboard holder and wiped his lips.

"What is that?" He asked, trying to remain impassive.

"It's tea. Did I not get the right one? I thought that was the one you liked?"

"Roza, I don't drink tea. You've only seen me drink coffee every morning."

Oh right…it was coffee. And he liked that black. Oops. "Sorry, I guess I forgot."

"Roza, are you sure everything is alright with you?"

"I'm fine, Dimitri. No need to worry about me."

His features softened. "Rose, you know you could tell me anything at any time."

"I know, comrade. I really am fine. But I would like to discuss something with you."

"I'm all ears." He smiled and my heart warmed.

"I started looking at names." His eyebrows raised and I continued. "I want to name her Lesya, kind of in honour of Lissa and him Evan, 'cause you know... it's like Ivan, and I know how much he meant to you. But it's the Scottish version so I know that'd please my mother."

He looked taken aback, but it was only for a second before he gathered me in his arms and all but hugged the life out of me.

"Oh, Roza, I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too, comrade."

"They're perfect." He leaned down and placed a sweet kiss on my lips before pulling back and tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear.

I was about to say something else to ruin the moment, but the announcement over the intercom stopped me.

"Flight 20A to St. Petersburg boarding now. Flight 20A to St. Petersburg boarding now."

**Okay, so I'm really proud of this chapter! Thank you again to Spirit Quartz who helped me out with the pregnancy stuff and thank you to CrystalCuCu-Mariaty for being my beta for the last handful of chapters! I realized I never mentioned you before so I'm doing it now! And check out her story, **Cold As Ice**, It's amazing! **

**Please review!**

**Until next time, Sarah!**


	34. Chapter 34

**Hey Guys! Long time no see! Well here's an update, the second coming soon! This is 4000 words of pure Romiti fluff! With that in mind, there is an M scene, which my one of my betas has so graciously marked. Thank you to Crystal-CuCu Mariaty and Spirit Quartz for helping me with this chapter. **

**Enjoy!**

_Previously;_

"_I know, comrade. I really am fine. But I would like to discuss something with you."_

"_I'm all ears." He smiled and my heart warmed. _

"_I started looking at names." His eyebrows raised and I continued. "I want to name her Lesya, kind of in honor of Lissa and him Evan, 'cause you know it's Ivan, and I know how much he meant to you. And it's the Scottish version so I know that'd please my mother."_

_He looked taken aback, but it was only for a second before he gathered me in his arms and hugged the life out of me._

"_Oh, Roza, I love you," he whispered. _

"_I love you too, comrade."_

"_They're perfect." He leaned down and placed a sweet kiss on my lips before pulling back and tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. _

_I was about to go say something else but the announcement over the intercom stopped me. _

"_Flight 20A to St. Petersburg boarding now. Flight 20A to St. Petersburg boarding now."_

I untangled myself from Dimitri and stood, stretching my limbs out even though I had taken a walk literally five minutes prior. These pregnancy aches were really getting to me, not to mention the back pain that had started to develop over the last hour. "Well that's us, comrade." I said, my smile huge.

"What do you mean 'that's us' Rose?" he asked.

"Surprise!" I beamed, grabbing his hand. "We're going to Russia!"

"You're joking." he said flatly, but hope lilted his voice and I had to fight my smile.

"Comrade, come on, why would I send you on that wild goose chase if the end result wasn't going to be extravagant?" I explained.

"We're really going to Russia?" he asked again, the anticipation building behind his eyes.

"Yes, Dimitri, we are."

"I could kiss you right now." Dimitri smiled so brightly, I thought his lips would fall off his face. I'd never seen his smile so wide before.

"Well you'll just have to reward me later. Right now, we've got a flight to catch."

* * *

"I still can't believe this is happening." Dimitri said while I tried to make myself comfortable. Not that I should have needed to. We were sitting in the most comfy seats we could've had; Lissa had insisted on upgrading our tickets to first class. "Nothing but the best to make sure you have a perfect flight", she'd said as she handed me the newly printed tickets.

Now I wished I'd thanked her ahead of time because I was sure that the next three and a half hours in a business class seat would've caused more problems than I wanted to deal with. Since we were taking a straight flight, it would take less time than if we chartered a place where we would've had to make transfers.

"You better believe it, comrade. In a couple hours we'll be landing in an arctic wasteland."

Dimitri laughed. It was deep and throaty, and it made my soul sing. "Oh, Roza, you've got much to learn."

"If it's all music from a different decade and borscht, then I think I'll pass. I hope they have a McDonalds 'cause I'm not going near any of that beet soup, or whatever it is."

"You're going to change your mind, Rose. I know you are."

I rested my head on the head rest and turned to look at him, "I doubt it. I'm going to take a nap, okay?"

"Go ahead, milaya. I'll wake you when we're about to land."

Dimitri didn't have to wake me; I did that on my own. Okay, well it wasn't completely on my own, I smelled food and woke up. Sue me.

"Mmm," I said, stretching. "Smells good."

If I hadn't already known how evil the hormones raging within me were, I figured it out when they had me drooling over airplane food. Airplane food was disgusting: I couldn't stand it. Yet suddenly, all I wanted to eat was that. The flight attendant smiled as she placed a tray in front of me, and passed me a Coke when I asked her for one. Dimitri politely declined his meal but after a pinch on the arm from me, he took it sheepishly.

"I could eat that!" I mumbled. I quickly swapped our trays; I was done within five minutes, and started on the steak first.

"Slow down, Rose," I heard Dimitri say from beside me. "Eat, not inhale."

I turned and narrowed my eyes at him. "You think you're so funny." He shrugged, smiled, and returned to his god-awful book.

He got the silent treatment for the rest of the flight. Instead, to keep me company, I pulled out a magazine and put my headphones in, enjoying some Rose time. Not long after, the aches and pains were starting to get to me again, despite the lush and comfy seats.

"I'm gonna take a walk. I'll be back." I got up and moved down the aisle, my hand on my protruding belly. I pulled back the blind and entered the business class, taking my time to reach the opposite side of the plane.

"Mommy! That lady's tummy is huge!"

I looked to my right to see a girl who couldn't be more than 5, with her hand covering her mouth in a very loud whisper.

"Emily! What have I told you about doing that?" The girl's mother looked at me with an apologetic smile. "I'm so sorry. It seems my daughter has forgotten her manners."

"No it's okay," I said. "I remember being like that at that age." I turned to Emily. "I've got two babies in here, that's why my tummy is so huge." I pointed to my stomach.

The girl gasped. "Did you eat them?"

I couldn't help but laugh with the other passengers around. "No, they're growing in there."

She made an 'oh' face and sank back into her seat. "Sorry again for my overly curious daughter, and congratulations by the way." Her mother spoke up.

"Thank you."

Before I knew it, the co-pilot informed us to return to our seats and put away all devices and buckle up for the landing. Returning to my seat, I broke my oath to not interact with Dimitri, I grabbed his hand and laced his fingers with mine, preparing for the inevitable popping of my ears and the splitting headache that would come.

Thankfully, I'd learned to control it somewhat on the flight to Britain, so it wasn't as bad as the first time I flew out of the wards when I'd gone to Court. Still, my eyes shut against the pain as I tried to expel the black figures and ghosts circling in my vision. I focused on the gentle touch of Dimitri's thumb as he rubbed the space between my thumb and index finger.

His gentle touches replaced the splitting pain with something else, something more. The first licks of heat started deep within…and part of it was depressing. It really was. Dimitri and I hadn't had sex in god knows how long and I was just itching to feel him inside me, and hear him call out my name.

And no, I didn't just want to make love. I needed a good fuck. Hard and rough.

Ugh, my hormones were all over the place and it seemed as if I couldn't get a handle on them. Don't get me wrong, I'd been wanting him all week, but now that we were going to be alone for a night, with nothing distracting and no interruptions, my subconscious was screaming at me to get down and dirty.

"Everything all right, Roza?"

I shook my head, that glorious deep voice shaking me out of my thoughts and stoking the fire that had started. "Hmmm?" I replied, staring at his lips, not having heard anything Dimitri had said.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just…tense." I said, finding a word that would work.

Dimitri looked over at me and smiled, a devious glint sparkling in his eyes, letting me know that he knew exactly why I was feeling tense.

He started rubbing the back of my knuckles, sending shivers throughout my body. I looked away and tried to focus on something other than the feeling of desire and want building up in me. I wracked my brain for something, and thought of Lissa. What was she doing? Had she got our apartments? Did she move in yet? And what about my parents? How was Adrian? And god-forbid Christian…

No matter how much I mused to myself, my mind didn't want to not register the way Dimitri was making me feel. The way his fingers ghosted over my arm, the slow breathing, his warm, heavy and familiar arm around my shoulders, all made me want to jump him right this second.

My head turned slightly to the side and up, so that my nose nuzzled his collarbone – his natural scent filling my senses. It was heavenly, and a wonderful change from his aftershave, which I still loved. I leaned up and pressed my lips to his neck, lightly.

"Be careful, Roza. Don't start something you can't finish."

"Who says I can't finish?" I pressed a kiss to his jaw, moving up and placing one on the corner of his mouth before hovering. "I always finish what I start, comrade."

I covered his mouth with my own, his response instant, lips pressing down on mine hard but gentle at the same time. My fingers moved up and curled in the front of Dimitri's shirt, slipping underneath his duster. I traced the seam of his lips with my tongue and nipped on his bottom lip, hearing him growl softly before slipping my tongue in his mouth. I felt him smile into the kiss and I twisted, deepening it. But before long, he pulled back, far too soon, resting his forehead against mine.

"You stopped," I whispered breathlessly, the words coming out more as a statement than a question. Pouting, I said, "I didn't get to finish."

He chuckled quietly. "Roza, I don't doubt that you would've finished, but you wouldn't have cared that we have an audience."

I turned around at his words, seeing the smiles and faces looking at us. Most of them were older couples. I turned back to Dimitri and mouthed a 'later', groaning inwardly. The kiss had done nothing to satiate me, if anything, it had only made the desire stronger, making me squeeze my thighs together to try and get some relief.

I sat back and closed my eyes, getting ready for our touchdown.

* * *

I held onto Dimitri's hand and kept close as I tried not to lose him in the masses of people at the baggage claim. He moved us over to a corner, bringing the trolley I had so kindly reminded him about.

"Okay, Rose, stay right here. I'm going to get our luggage off the carousel."

"I'll be right here when you return. This place is worse than the mall on Christmas Eve." I laughed and he kissed my cheek before leaving.

I yawned, blinking my eyes to try and stay awake as I searched for Dimitri. It wasn't hard; my boyfriend stood at least 5 inches higher than the second tallest person here. I grinned when I saw him. He looked glorious. I mean, of course he always looked glorious, but it really hit me right then. With his hair pulled back and his duster, he looked fierce. I was so caught up in him that I didn't even notice when he came back, holding both suitcases. It shouldn't have surprised me: his muscles were huge…and delicious, and so yummy.

_Get a grip on yourself, Rose! Only two hours until you get to the hotel._

"Ready to go, comrade?" he nodded and we were on our way, first through customs, then on to the hotel.

I carried my handbag and the carry on, Dimitri pushing the trolley. "Comrade, you're like a pro at that. Getting ready to push those strollers, huh?"

Dimitri rolled his eyes and shook his head at me. "Of course, Roza. Who else will do it?"

"Hey!"

* * *

"Thank the lord!" I exclaimed as I flopped down onto the thick down of the hotel mattress. "Oh my God, Dimitri, we have to get one of these! They're so soft!"

We – or rather Dimitri – had decided it would be best to wait a night before travelling to Baia. He said daylight was the best time to travel to avoid the Strigoi that tended to lurk on the roads at night. I agreed – even though I would never tell anyone, I was in no condition to be fighting Strigoi – and we checked in.

"Roza, you should go get ready for bed. It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

I kind of hated when he did that. Sometimes he clung to the role of 'mentor' a little too hard. I'm a grown woman: I don't need to be told when to get ready for bed. Maybe Dimitri needed a reminder…

I sighed and sat up lazily. I stretched out my arms and asked Dimitri to carry me, to which he rolled his eyes but did nonetheless.

"You know, you spoil me too much, comrade. I could've walked." I said when he put me down in the plush bathroom.

He grinned. "But you wouldn't have. Besides, I love spoiling you, milaya."

"And I love-" I paused, pretending to think, "-you. Now scram."

As soon as the hot water hit my skin, I moaned and my head fell forward, the steady stream sheathing my body. It felt like heaven after the long day. My muscles relaxed – something I desperately needed. I picked up the soap bar and started massaging it into my skin, and of course, my sex deprived brain immediately imagined my hands were Dimitri's, slowly moving on my body, almost in my body.

My stomach flipped and flopped with every touch, sending me into overdrive. My hand drifted down, working its way to my center.

_'ROSE!'_

I tensed up. _'Lissa?'_

_'Yes, Rose, it's me.' _I felt her eye roll.

_'Um…What's up?'_

_'Rose! Do you know what I just saw?!_'

_'No?'_ I said, trying to play dumb.

_'Rose!'_

_'That's what they call me.'_

_'That was so not funny! I think I'm scarred for life!'_

_'You think you're scarred for life? I had to see Christian's pale ass!'_ I smiled at our playful banter.

_'Ugh, please don't do that when I'm around.'_

_'Don't do what?'_ I waggled my eyebrows, projecting the image. _'And I hate to break it to ya, Liss, but you're always around.'_

She groaned. _'Rose, why do you do this to me?'_

I grinned. _'Actually, I was trying to do this to myself, but you interrupted. Payback's a bitch, sister. Just keep your barriers up tonight.'_

_'Wait, why? Oh I get it-'_

It probably wasn't nice to shove her out of my mind, but oh well, she'd get over it. Right now, I had to get over to Dimitri. Like right now.

I stepped out of the shower and dried off, putting on a silky negligee I had bought when Lissa and I'd gone to Victoria's Secret. It was black and totally transparent. Dimitri would go wild, and that's exactly what I needed.

I pushed open the bathroom door and leaned on the frame, crossing my arms. Dimitri was sitting on the bed in just his boxers, reading the same book he was on the plane. I stood there for a few moments, getting his attention. Although he didn't look directly at me, I knew he knew I was there. I walked over to the overnight bag sitting in front of the bed, dragging out the movements, swaying my hips. As I walked, I felt Dimitri's eyes shift from the book and onto me.

Time for a little show.

**Start of M Scene**

I stepped right into his view and turned around, caressing my hip before bending over and making a show of rummaging through my things, my legs spread the tiniest bit and I heard Dimitri's sharp intake of breath. I smiled.

Grabbing the lotion, I sat down on my side of the bed and brought one leg up. Squirting some lotion on my hands, I started rubbing in into my leg. My slow movements kept Dimitri's eyes focused on my every move. When I was done, I switched legs and drew the movements out as sensually as I could.

I then arched my back, my head rolling back, whilst a deep sigh came from my throat as I heard Dimitri's labored breathing. Turning, I met his intent gaze with one of my own. I smiled and bit my lip in anticipation, slowly crawling over him until I straddled his hips.

The moan flew out of my mouth; the feeling of the bulge right under my wet heat was just too much. I gently rolled my hips, once, twice, throwing my head back from the slight tremors of pleasure. Dimitri's eyes were dilated completely black with lust as I rested a hand on his shoulder and rubbed, my hips still gently rolling. With my other hand I took the book from his hands and placed it on the bedside table. Dimitri wasn't complaining.

Now that his hands were empty, he took the opportunity to place them on my waist. His long fingers ran up my sides and back down, making me purr with content. Dimitri held me firmly, sliding me up his body. Now that I was higher than him, I used it to my advantage, I laced my arms around Dimitri's neck and threaded my fingers through his locks and pulled down, giving Dimitri the perfect access to my chest. Which he loved.

I gasped when he pressed a kiss to my sternum, not stopping as he made his way over to the left swell of my breast, then my right. Dimitri started nuzzling, occasionally pressing kisses and making me arch my back and grab tighter.

"Dimitri," I whispered. I yanked on his hair, pulling him up. He gave me one of those rare smiles. "Comrade, I love you."

I bent my head and felt his breath tickle my lips. My eyes fluttered closed and I waited for him to take the lead, momentarily forgetting that this was my seduction.

A light kiss on my jaw, the corner of my mouth, and finally he pressed his lips against mine. It was a hesitant peck, barely brushing before pulling back. A teasing touch. A low rumble reverberated through Dimitri's chest when I nudged my nose to his, taking the control back. I trailed a path up the side of his face with my nose, feeling him lean into my touch. Circling his ear, I bit his lobe gently.

Dimitri groaned, his hands tightening on my waist, fingers digging in. "Comrade, I want you."

I blew gently on his ear, licking up and down the lobe. "Comrade, I need you."

His hips bucked up. "Oh god, Dimitri, please. Take me – make me feel it."

I leaned down and pressed my lips to his, Dimitri responded: just as aggressive as I was. He rubbed the backs of my thighs, his hands slowly trailing up until he cupped my ass, giving both cheeks rough squeeze. He pressed our lower halves together and removed his lips from mine, only to make me throw my head back in pleasure when he found that spot behind my ear and started sucking.

"God Dimitri, don't stop." I panted as the waves of fire rolled through me, heating that coil forming in my lower stomach.

Dimitri flipped us, my back hitting the soft mattress with a quiet thump, earning giggle from me. I hummed contentedly as he returned his lips to mine, kissing me hard. Dimitri grabbed one of my legs and hooked it around his waist. I pulled and tugged at his hair, holding him to me and never letting go.

Our battle for dominance began: lips crashing against the others and tongues wrapping together. I loved this, but I loved it even more when Dimitri was in control, so I let him have it. His tongue thrust into my mouth, touching and tasting everywhere. I sucked on it.

The coil tightened, and I pulled back, gasping for air. Dimitri continued down my throat, kissing and sucking so hard at the base that I was sure to have bruises tomorrow. That combined with the feel of his fingers as he slipped them under my nightie almost make me come undone.

His fingers ran up and down my sides, and over my breasts, teasing. He ran them around where I needed him to touch, but never exactly there. I arched my back, wanting to feel more. I gasped when he gave my hardened nipple a flick, my body trembling and my eyes fluttering closed.

In one flush motion he had the black silk ripped off my body, his skillful mouth replacing his hands. He started at my sternum, nipping and kissing a trail down the middle of my breasts, teasing the nipples between his teeth, and the bottom of my stomach before dipping into the belly button.

"Oh god!" I cried as Dimitri's mouth latched onto my sex. My hips bucked wildly as he licked up and down my slit before settling on that sensitive nub.

"Dimitri, oh god, please don't-" his tongue flicked at my clit. "Fuck, Dimitri" I panted, his arm stretching across my hips to hold them down. His other hand came up between my legs, finally touching.

I was two seconds away from combusting. My orgasm was fast approaching. "Fuck, I can't... " I gasped as I felt my walls start to clench madly around Dimitri's fingers.

With one last flick of his tongue, Dimitri sent me over the other side, still licking as I rode out my orgasm. Taking deep breaths, I opened my eyes to see Dimitri looking up at me, my legs locked over his shoulders, him lapping at me as I came down from my high.

"That was amazing," I whispered as I pulled him up and engaged him in a kiss, tasting myself on his lips, the smell of sex in the air.

"Glad to be of service," he murmured.

I was very aware of Dimitri's rock hard erection pressed against my thigh. And it didn't go unnoticed that he was still wearing his boxers. Lightly I racked my fingers down his chest until I reached his waistband, occasionally dipping inside and playing. Dimitri groaned. "Stop teasing, Roza."

"Is this what you want?" I plunged in, my hand wrapping firmly around his hardened length. Dimitri groaned and buried his face in my neck. Slowly, I built up a steady pace, working up and down his shaft, Dimitri grunting and groaning with every stroke.

"Harder," he whispered. My grip tightened as his breathing quickened. I sped up, circling the tip. I pumped his throbbing member harder and used my other hand to stroke the head.

"Roza, ебать! Stop – I want to feel you."

I leaned up and captured Dimitri in a kiss, moving to straddle him. "You want me?"

"Always, Roza." His lips turned up and I placed my hands on his chest, his on my hips.

"Tell me." I ordered, pressing against him just a little.

"You know I do."

"Tell me, Dimitri. Tell me what you want. Tell me..." I pressed against him, teasing him, keeping him right against my entrance, "tell me what you _need_.

He gazed at me, eyes dark with primal hunger. He wasn't used to me in real control. It felt good, powerful. It evened out the playing field.

"I want you. I want to be inside you." Dimitri blushed a little, obviously unused to any kind of dirty talk. He was a man of action.

"Oh, I understand. Like this?" I lowered myself a little, just enough to envelop the head, and he groaned, low and animalistic. The sound alone made my muscles clench.

"More, Roza. I want all of you."

I smiled, lowering slowly as far as I could, until he was buried inside me. I didn't move, through sheer force of will. "You like that?"

"Yes. More." he gasped.

I didn't move my hips, but clenched and unclenched my muscles around him. The look on his face was euphoric. He looked like the virgin now, and I realized: he would never be with anyone but me again. He was _mine_.

Feeling drunk on power, I raised myself up slowly, pushing down at the same speed. Dimitri was sweating, head pushing hard into the pillows. He tried to thrust up, but I squeezed my thighs hard, keeping him still. My seduction. Mine. Until I was ready. I pressed my hands to his chest, nails digging in and leaving little crescent moons in his skin.

I moved up and then came down fast, hard. I looked at him. "This is what I want. Hard. I want to feel it for the next three days. Can you handle that?"

He nodded, wide-eyed and breathless.

I moved my hips faster, breasts bouncing. We soon feel into a rhythm, Dimitri meeting my every thrust with one of his own. We were voracious, wild.

"Harder, harder," I panted as he increased the intensity of his thrust.

It was heaven, hearing the slap of skin against skin, the brush of constant motion. A sheen of sweat had gathered on both of us.

"Roza, Roza, Roza," Dimitri grunted my name over and over again as he continued to drive into me, over and over.

"Oh my god, Dimitri, right there!"

"Roza..." his hand slipped between us, fingers rubbing me, feeling where we were joined. I jerked and threw my head back, wailing softly.

"Roza!" Dimitri's release triggered my own and I was biting his shoulder to muffle my cries. I continued to rock my hips, riding it out.

We stayed like that for a minute, holding each other before I pulled off of him. I cuddled against his chest as we caught our breath.

**End of M Scene**

"Wow. That was amazing. What's gotten into you? You're usually a bigger fan of instant gratification." He smiled that special smile that only came out with me.

"Mmm. I just... I want to get on the same level. We talk about the age difference not being an issue, but you still sometimes talk me like I'm your student. I'm a grown woman. I don't want you to forget that, even when I'm acting like a teenager. You know?"

He ran his fingers through my hair, a strange look on his face. "I'm sorry; I don't always realize how I sound. I like to take care of you. You're always thinking about others, you don't watch out for yourself. I know you're a grown woman though. Sometimes, I think you're more grown than me."

I kissed him, his words repeating in my head. Probably one of the sweetest things anyone had ever said about me.

We could have laid there kissing for hours. My hands started to roam, massaging his shoulders, arms, back... I pressed closer to him, and felt a twitch against my leg. Two twitches, insistent. I smiled and giggled against his mouth.

I looked at Dimitri, the smile on his lips and glint in his eyes telling me exactly what he wanted. "Again?"

"Again."

The time, I was on all fours.

* * *

"I'm exhausted." I said as I snuggled into Dimitri's big arms. He laughed.

"You should be. That was a marathon."

I yawned. "I feel like I have no bones." I lifted my hand, which immediately flopped down.

"Did I hurt you?"

It was my turn to laugh. "Dimitri, I love it when you're rough." I turned over to look at him. "I'm not made of porcelain."

He chuckled. "Okay, Roza, now go to sleep. We've got to get up early tomorrow."

"What did I say about bossing me?"

He kissed me. "Sorry. Please go to sleep, oh magnificent mother of my children."

I laughed. "That's better."

"I love you, Roza."

"Ya lyblyu tebya, tovarishcha." I whispered back.

**So how'd you guys like it? Review and let me know! It'd make an awesome birthday present seeing as today I turn 16!**

**See you guys next update!**


	35. Chapter 35

**Hello Hello Hello my dear readers! Here I am again with a new chapter that I hope you'll love! Thank you to my wonderful betas, CrystalCuCu-Mariarty and Spirit Quartz for helping me out! They're amazing, and so are their fics, so go check them out! Right after you finish reading this, of course. **

**Disclaimer: Richelle Mead owns all recognizable VA content. I own the plot. **

"Will you stop your worrying, Roza? They're going to love you." I looked over at my boyfriend (I really wished I had a better title for him. 'Baby Daddy sounded crass, but boyfriend wasn't enough) who was loading our luggage into the trunk of the Honda we rented. "Roza, do you know why they're going to love you?" He asked, closing the trunk and coming to me, "because I love you." He placed two fingers under my chin and titled it upwards, giving me a tender, chaste kiss.

"But what if-"

"No, 'what if', Roza. It's going to be alright." Dimitri reassured me. "You've talked to my mother before, right?"

I bit my lip and nodded. "But that was over the phone. This is completely different!"

"How so, Roza? How did you introduce yourself to her?" Dimitri asked me, leaning against the door of the car.

"As your girlfriend," I mumbled quietly.

"And how did Mama react to that?" He said with a hint of a smile playing on his lips like he already knew the answer.

"She was happy." In truth, that lady could've rivalled Lissa in any squealing match.

Dimitri laughed. "If I know my mother, she's overjoyed that I've finally found someone to share my life with. The woman of my dreams, whom I love so much."

"Okay, okay, no need to flatter me... much." I said smiling, his words easing my fears.

"Oh, Roza, I love you"

"The feeling is mutual, comrade."

Even in my stretchy black leggings, I was having constant muscle spasms in my calves. I stretched my legs out as much as I could, which kept the cramps at bay for a while.

I found Dimitri's hand across the console and laced my fingers with his, our intertwined fingers resting lightly on his thigh. I leaned my head back against the headrest and closed my eyes, trying to get some rest. This symptom of pregnancy was starting to get to me. Even though I loved to sleep, I was starting to hate it. I was tired of being tired. I don't think I'd ever slept more than I had in the past couple weeks.

I let myself slowly drift off to the sound of Dimitri's soft singing along to the radio. He had a really beautiful voice.

I remembered this dream; it was the one I had the night in Portland, right before Dimitri found Lissa and me. Though instead of a random hot guy, it was Dimitri who was rubbing suntan oil on my back. I hummed in content. Nothing could've been better. My family was safe and happy, spending the beautiful day under the hot sun at the beach. My husband was sitting beside me and my two children were making a sand castle in front of me while I watched them in delight.

"Mommy! Look!" I turned my head in the direction of her voice. My baby girl had a huge smile on her face.

"It's beautiful, Lesya. Come here." I said. I sat up and she bounded into my waiting arms. I squeezed her tight and she giggled.

"Mommy, you're so silly! My name isn't Lesya!"

"Daddy! Daddy!" Dimitri raised his gaze from his book to our son, and lit up. Dimitri scooped him up and placed him on his lap, his attention solely on his son. "What do you have there, son?"

"A sea shell. I found it. Keep it?" He looked up at Dimitri with wide eyes and Dimitri chuckled.

"Of course you can, son." Dimitri would give the world to his children if he could. He was the best father these kids could ask for.

"I wanna see!"

My baby boy looked at his sister and hugged her, my heart swelled. He handed her the shell and she looked at it, 'oohing' and 'ahhing'. They had one of the best sibling relationships, and I cherished it while I could; before they grew up and got older, wanting nothing to do with each other.

"I think it's picture time!" I announced, wanting to capture this moment forever. I scooted closer to Dimitri and we switched kids. I had my little man and Dimitri's princess was in his lap. Dimitri stretched his arm out and everyone looked into the camera and he pressed the button, the flash so bright.

Suddenly I was somewhere else. I was spiraling into bright light and I immediately knew where I was going. A vision.

This time, I saw the same old building, with the same papers and books as before. Except it was more prominent now. That had to be important. My heart plummeted when I saw him again. His blond hair flapping in the wind. He was talking to someone; she was obscured by the fog. All I could make out was black hair.

'Time is running out'.

The words echoed all around, louder and louder, faster and more frequent.

Suddenly it all stopped. I opened my eyes. My vision darted around the place as I tried to calm my erratic breathing and pounding heart.

"Good nap?"

I whipped around to look at Dimitri whose focus was still on the road. I resisted the urge to place my hand on my heart and alert him of anything. "Um, yeah, sure I'm fine." I said, not sure of myself.

He nodded and we drove in silence until Dimitri turned off the road and into a gas station. "We need to get gas. Do you want to stay in the car? Or do you need to get out and stretch?"

"I'll get out. I have to go to the washroom. I'll get some snacks too."

Uneasiness crossed his face, and his brows creased together, obviously uncomfortable leaving my side – I wondered why this place made him nervous. He kissed my cheek and let me go.

Once I was sure I was out of his sight and hearing, I let out a shaky breath that I hadn't even realized that I was holding. Get your shit together, Rose. It was just a vision.

I used the bathroom quicker than I ever thought possible and grabbed some snacks, joining the line. When I got up to the till, I placed my items on the belt and hoped the girl knew what I wanted. I thanked god when the price showed up on her machine because that was the one thing I could read in this country. Cyrillic is ridiculously hard. I handed her rubles and grabbed my bag, thanking her and leaving.

"Everything okay, Rose?" Dimitri asked as I slipped back into the passenger's side.

"Everything is fine. How much longer do we have until we get there?" I said, diverting the subject from me.

"Half an hour, an hour at most." He said, his face radiating the excitement at seeing his family.

For the time being, I pushed away my worries about the vision and decided to deal with it later. Right now, I dedicated my attention one hundred percent to Dimitri. I grabbed his hand and returned his smile. "Tell me more about your family."

"Well did I already tell you about…"

And that's how the rest of the drive went; I listened to his voice and he soothed my nerves with every word he said. When we turned into a suburban neighbourhood, my heat started thumping loudly. When we turned onto a street and passed the park, my heart wanted to jump out of my chest. When we finally turned into a driveway, my heart fought against my rib cage to leave me.

"You ready for this, Roza?" Dimitri turned and chuckled at my horrified face.

"I changed my mind. Let's go back to America. I like it there. I don't think I can do this."

Dimitri outright laughed at me. "Of course you can do this. You're Rose Hathaway, you can do anything."

I took a deep breath. "You're right. Okay, let's get out of the car before I chicken out and shove the keys back in the ignition."

"Roza, you never fail-"

"DIMKA!"

Whatever Dimitri was going to say it was cut off by a girl's scream as she came rushing down the driveway and engulfed Dimitri in a bone-crushing hug, talking rapidly in Russian, She jumped on him and he spun her around, returning her fierce embrace and answering her back in their native language.

"Mama! Dimka's here!"

Dimitri managed to spare a glare at me – like I was somehow responsible for it – before he was bombarded with hugs and kisses from his other sister and his mother. Russian flew fast and furious. Happiness and something else, something I couldn't describe, emanated from the Belikov family; something that once would've made me roll my eyes now made me tear up. Stupid hormones.

It took a while before I was noticed by a woman who appeared to be in her late forties. One look at her and you could tell she was a mother, a personality that just shone through. She whispered something to Dimitri and smiled, and he beamed widely at whatever his mother said. When Dimitri realized she was motioning to me, he walked over and looped an arm around my waist, his hand resting firmly but gently on my sweater clad bump.

Well, here goes nothing.

He cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention. It wasn't like he needed to, their eyes hadn't left their beloved brother since they greeted him, "Mama, Vika, Karo, I have someone I'd like you all to meet. This is my Roza."

The girls looked at me, eyebrows scrunched in confusion. Their expressions were so familiar…it was the same one Adrian wore when he scrutinized my aura. Oh, shit. This was bad. Out of Dimitri's two sisters, the younger one, Viktoria whispered something to Karolina before returning her gaze – glare – to me.

I crossed my arms consciously, like it was going to do any good. Apparently Dimitri noticed his sisters' evil eyes, and knew what they were looking at. He moved in front of me, just enough to cover the gigantic bump. I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out.

As I struggled to find the right thing to say, Dimitri's mother smiled at me, a genuine smile. One that told me she hadn't seen yet. Before anything could happen, I was going to do some damage control and make a good impression. Though I didn't know how to fix the one I had just made.

"It's so nice to meet you Ms. Belikova." I said, making the first move. I smiled shyly. How much worse could it be?

"Olena, dear." And that's when she shocked me. Olena grabbed me in a hug that could only be described as the same one she bestowed upon her son. Shit, shit, shit, shit.

I stood stiff as a board; I wanted to return the hug so badly, but no matter how much I willed, I couldn't move my arms to wrap around her. "It's nice to finally meet you, Roza. My son talks about you-."

I felt her stiffen and her arms loosened. Olena pulled away from me slowly and her eyes bugged out as she took me in, and gave me a full once over, twice, thrice. Her movements were heavy and lethargic; the complete opposite of mine. My heart beat so fast and my breathing was past the point of being erratic.

Olena swallowed, and slowly turned to look at her son. I felt my whole being drop, as I heard the disappointment and anger clear as day when she spoke to Dimitri.

"When were you going to tell me?" She asked quietly. For once, I wish she'd spoken in Russian around me.

I felt sick, like I was going to throw up. I needed to get out of here. I needed to leave. I needed to-

"Mama-"

"No, Dimitri! This is important. How dare you bring this girl into my house and she's pregnant? With someone else's child, too." Oh, she didn't.

Dimitri stretched his neck from side to side and I felt him shake next to me. I laid a hand on his clenched arm, hoping my touch would cool him down a bit. Before he could say something, one of his sisters had stepped out and stood next to Olena.

Viktoria didn't have her anger masked as Olena did. Her arms were crossed, lips pressed in a tight line, and eyes narrowed. She looked at me and her lip curled in disgust as she not so quietly yelled, "I don't know who you think you are but you need to leave right now."

Oh believe me, I wanted to. Seriously, at home the Moroi treated me like Dhampir trash, and here the Dhampir's did! I must have 'slut' written on my forehead, though I'd only ever been with one man.

She then turned to Dimitri. "Why are you so idiotic? Why in fucks' sake would you bring her here? Especially when she's like that."

I heard Dimitri growl. "You need to shut your mouth, Viktoria."

She raised her eyebrows. "Or what, Dimitri? You gonna fight me?"

His hands clenched into fists. I hadn't ever seen him so angry before. It was scary. I grabbed his shaking hand to stop him from doing anything rash. "Dimitri, the neighbours. We're causing a scene." His head whipped to me, and I looked at him, imploring him to stop and just, I didn't know. Anything.

Around us, several neighbours were looking out their windows and some had come out of their houses to see what the spectacle on the street was. They looked at us with curiosity and wondering. None of them even tried to be discreet about it; the eyes were on us, watching, listening.

I needed to do something. I took a deep breath and stepped out from behind Dimitri, immediately wanting the asphalt to open and swallow me up when four pairs of eyes landed on me. Instead, I stood up taller and found my voice. "Please, don't be mad at Dimitri. It's not his fault. I can explain."

"Explain? Are you going to tell us that you're pregnant? And it's another man's child?" I looked over to Dimitri's third sister, Karolina, who hadn't spoken up until now. She was calmer than Viktoria but she was still just as angry. I had to bite my tongue – I had been alone when I found out I was pregnant because she was having a fatherless child. How backwards was this country? I'd rather eat borscht than deal with this. And that's saying something.

"Please," I pleaded. "Just let me explain. Give me a chance."

Olena looked at me, her brown eyes, the same ones as Dimitri, bore into mine. She looked conflicted.

"Please. It's not right to judge me for being a Dhampir. Yes, I'm an unfortunate freak of nature, but I would expect you all to listen to what we have to say first." I was getting angry, being judged by a family of unmarried Dhampirs, women with children, especially. I wanted to love these people, but the utter hypocrisy was infuriating. If I hadn't been focused on calming Dimitri down, I might have said worse.

Olena sighed, and finally nodded after a few moments. I breathed out a sigh of relief, and prepared myself for what was going to come next. I won one battle, now I had to convince them that what I was going to tell them was true, and win the war.

"Don't be intimidated," Dimitri whispered in my ear. I looked up at him. How can I not?

Dimitri pressed a kiss to my forehead and smoothed my hair back, and took the lead, pulling me along, and into the house.

As soon as I walked in, I could tell that it was a place you could call home. It just had that feeling. Dimitri followed his family into the living room, where a boy sat, playing with action figures. A boy who looked like a younger Dimitri.

At his side, a baby, less than a year, sat in her jumper, laughing and giggling. She had dark black hair, and brown eyes, her baby smile lifting my mood slightly. Karolina walked over to her and picked her up, placing her on her lap. That must be Zoya, Karolina's daughter, and on the ground, her son, Paul.

Dimitri took a seat on the loveseat and pulled me down, tucking me into his side so tightly I was almost sitting in his lap. His arm wrapped around my waist and hand rested firmly on my bump. He felt warm and safe.

I tried to ignore the glowers from Viktoria. Footsteps pounded down the stairs and another woman burst through the doorway, her smile so huge when her eyes landed on Dimitri. "Dimka," she said. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Sonya." I could hear the genuine sincerity in his words.

"What's going on? Mama said you were home and you had to talk to us." She said.

Dimitri nodded and gestured to me. Sonya moved her gaze from her brother. "Oh, you must be Roza! It's so nice to finally meet you! You know when my brother said he had a girlfriend I didn't believe him cause you know-oh," Sonya trailed off and I knew why.

She clucked her tongue and nodded her head. "Okay then, I'll just go take a seat."

She did that, eyes wide. Shortly after Sonya had joined us in the living room, a frail old woman, who had to be no taller than five feet walked into the room, muttering in Russian. She looked up and acknowledged Dimitri and I, grinning a toothy grin when she saw us together.

"Babushka." This time, Dimitri got up to go hug his grandmother. It was startling, the height difference. He let her go after a few moments and came back to me, resuming the same position he was in before.

"Okay, now that everyone's here, please explain to us what this is." Olena said curtly, waving her hands to gesture at my pregnant belly.

Dimitri beat me to it. "I know what you all think. That it is not my child."

"We all know it is not your child, Dimitri. That's impossible. We're not stupid." Karolina said.

"That's where you're wrong. They are mine." He said simply. I laughed internally at the inadvertent insult.

Much like what happened on the driveway repeated itself once more. Except with less of the yelling, and more silence. Loud, deafening silence.

Viktoria was the first to regain her composure. "Did you hit your head on a rock? Wake up, Dimitri!"

Olena looked at Dimitri, her facial expression unreadable. "Dimitri, I know you want to believe that but it's not possible. They can't be yours. Both you and Rose are dhampirs. It's not possible."

"They are mine. Just let me explain."

Olena shrugged. "Go ahead. But I don't see what difference it will make."

Dimitri began. "This is possible. It's very, very rare, but it's possible. It's only happened twice before." Dimitri held a hand up in protest when Sonya started to say something. "Our situation is different. Rose, well…" Dimitri trailed of, and I knew he was struggling for words.

I placed my hand on his arm and smiled sympathetically. I would take over. "I died a few years ago." Not waiting for a response I continued, both for the sake of them and me. If I didn't let it all out now, I wasn't sure if I could do it again.

"When I was in kindergarten, I met Lissa Dragomir and we became inseparable. Almost three years ago, Lissa and I, as well as her family were in the car. A drunk driver was driving on the wrong side of the road... Lissa's family died on impact…so did I.

"It was only for a few seconds, but it was enough for Lissa to bring me back. See, Lissa specializes in Spirit magic, and one of the things she can do with her magic is heal people, and in my case, she brought me back to life. The result makes me shadow kissed.

"Among other things, when Lissa brought me back, it forged this one way bond between us. I could hear all her thoughts, but she couldn't mine. Until recently. The bond is now two ways, we're still trying to figure out how that's possible.

"Anyways, my genetic code was also altered slightly, and Dr. Olendzki said that's just enough for me to get pregnant by another Dhampir. It's a genetic fluke she said. Also, Dimitri, he's not normal either. In fact, none of you are."

I didn't know how well this was going to go over with the Belikovas. I basically just said they were all freaks. So I did what was best. I pressed on.

"According to the accounts of the two other cases, it wasn't just the mishap of my genetic code that allowed Dimitri to get me pregnant. Both parties also need to have spirit in them. My spirit comes from being shadow kissed, while Dimitri's, ergo all of yours, comes from her."

I looked over at Yeva, and so did the rest of the Belikovas. Yeva was grinning. "Ochen' khorosho, devochka."

I had no idea what she said but I continued. "And that's how I'm pregnant. They are Dimitri's. He's the only one I've-" I stopped myself when I realized what I was going to say.

I let out a breath when I finished, leaning back onto Dimitri and closing my eyes. I felt him kiss the back of my neck, right on top of my promise mark, and drew much needed strength from him. When I opened my eyes to face his family once again, I was met with looks of disbelief and shock around the room.

"I don't understand." Karolina said. "Why hadn-"

"She speaks the truth."

Once again, Yeva said something that stunned the rest of the family. Dimitri let out a breath and whispered something in Russian. Dimitri had told me that Yeva can see things others cannot, and usually they were true. Dimitri certainly believed in whatever visions his grandmother had, and it seemed the rest of his family did too, because not a second later were they turning to us, looking all apologetic.

"It really is your child, isn't it, Dimka?" Olena said to Dimitri. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you two at first. And I'm sorry that my actions to you have been nothing but rude. I hope you can forgive me."

"Of course, Mama." Dimitri said, his voice breaking ever so little. He got up to hug his mother tightly. When he pulled back, Olena turned to me.

"I am so sorry, Rose. I had no right to treat you like that. I hope we can start over."

"Please. I'd like to make a good second impression if I can." Olena chuckled nervously, still worried. "Olena, it's fine. Please. If I were in your place, I might have acted the same." Well, I wouldn't, but there was no point in being petty.

Maybe I was growing up... nah.

Olena nodded. I grabbed her in a hug, shocking both myself and her. "We're all good." I said.

Around me, the family chortled quietly, and I let Olena go, only to have Viktoria bound up to me. "Oh my god, Rose I'm so sorry! You have to believe me! I only said what I did because I was blinded by anger, you have to believe me. I'm so sorry! I didn't really mean it!"

I laughed. This girl reminded me a lot of Mason, with all the apologizing. "It's okay, Viktoria. It's your brother. You just want to protect him. I get it. I just won't name our daughter after you." I winked, so she'd know I was joking – mostly.

She breathed out. "Oh man. Thank you, Roza. You know when Dimitri told us about you, I couldn't stop imagining how cool you were? And how cool it'd be to hang out with you?" she shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I kinda blew that chance now, huh?"

"No you didn't. We can still hang out. And I promise I'm much cooler than whatever Dimitri said." Okay, so I was lying to myself a bit. No matter how much I told myself that their words were just out of anger at the situation, what they said really cut me deep. And even though I was forgiving everyone left, right and centre, I was still very wary of what could happen. I was still cautious, because I knew that it could happen again.

But for now, I pushed those fears away, as I did with everything it seemed these days, and decided I would enjoy my vacation for now.

Well, as much as I could.

**Well? How was it? Review and let me know! The next chapter's already done and in the beta-ing process. I hope to have it up by next week **

**In the meantime, I'd love to hear from you guys! Your response to last chapter blew me away! **

**Much love, **

**Sarah**


	36. Chapter 36

**Well hello, hello my dear readers! I realize I didn't reply to any of your reviews...which I'm sorry about. Life got in the way! But I appreciated each and every one of them. Before we start, just a quick thank you to SpiritQuartz, who helped me fix up this chapter so much that it wouldn't be the horrible crap it was before I sent it to her! And another thank you to CrystalCuCu-Mariarty for fixing up what was came after and making it acceptable for you guys to read!  
**

**Enjoy!**

I was in that place between waking and sleeping; I wasn't quite awake, but I wasn't fully asleep either. It was that place where one little thing could break the spell and cause you to wake. And this morning, that tiny little thing was the repeated compression happening in my bladder. Punch, punch, punch, like my bladder was a lumpy pillow and she was trying to make it more comfortable. My eyes slowly fluttered open and the waves of bright sunlight temporarily blinded me.

I rolled off the bed and stumbled, lurching forwards just a tiny bit. I felt a sharp jab in my abdomen and I placed my hand on my stomach, calming the restless kicks. My son this time. The doctor had showed me their relative positions at each appointment, explaining that I needed to keep track of their movement -'kick counts', she had called it - so I followed and pictured their positions as they moved. A couple of days ago, the two little ones had not stopped dancing; it was like they were partying their lives away.

I laughed at my thoughts, rubbing gentle circles on my tummy. They relaxed for a moment, and I took the temporary hesitation to make my way to the bathroom and empty my bladder. In the last few weeks, my morning sickness had eased, thankfully, though many days I would still feel slightly queasy.

But when one thing ends, another begins. And so had the pains and constant need to pee. Throughout the beginning of the pregnancy they were a minor annoyance but now, it seemed that they amplified a thousand times in intensity. I had a done a good job so far of hiding it from Dimitri and Lissa. Though I suspected Adrian had an inkling.

Upon returning to the room, I noticed the empty bed, something I'd failed to see when I had gotten up. From the looks of it, the bed had been empty for quite some time, save for myself. And when I looked at my phone, it was almost one in the afternoon…which couldn't be right. The jetlag and time difference shouldn't have made me this lethargic. It wasn't right.

My stomach rumbled and I glanced wistfully at the bed, wishing I could curl back under the warm sheets and enjoy the sunlight. I ran my fingers though my hair before heading over to my suitcase to make myself look presentable. Although Dimitri wouldn't have minded the tiny shorts and the tank top that rode up, I'm pretty sure his family would, and I wanted to make a decent impression.

God knows what damage yesterday had done; hopefully my choice of dress could work in my favour. Last night when we had sorted out all our business and the Belikovas understood as much as possible, I'd gone straight to bed. I even skipped dinner, something I never did. I needed some space to breathe without someone judging me.

When I protested Dimitri following me up, he shut me down and told me that he'd rather be here, with me, than with the others. I looked at him incredulously and he only told me he loved me.

I broke down crying. This man held so much love for me, it was breathtaking. To think that he'd skip being with his family to be with me…it made my heart swell. As my eyes watered, Dimitri came up to me and dropped on his knees, resting his forehead against mine, and smiling a smile I knew he only reserved for me.

He had reached down and grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers together and I bolted up to meet his eyes, the electricity running through me at just his touch. His left hand reached up and stroked the side of my face and I turned into his touch, feeling the warmth.

"You should be with your family."

"I am." He replied simply.

"You know what I mean."

He kissed my hand and held it to his chest, moving to look into my eyes.

"Roza, the moment I knew I was in love with you, that I wanted a life with you, you became my family. You and our children. It doesn't change the love I have for Mama and the girls, but they're relatives, and my family- my nuclear family- is right here with you and our children. Do you understand?"

"Honestly? Not really, no."

He pursed his lips, thinking. "When you think the word 'home' do you think of your mother?"

"No, I think of you."

"Exactly."

"But I've never had the kind of relationship you do with your family, there's no comparison."

"It doesn't matter what the relationship is like. The bottom line is that I love you, and that makes you my family. It's even in the Bible."

"No way, where? You're making that up."

He smiled at my accusing tone. "Genesis 2:24 and Mark 10:7 says that 'man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife' I'm sure I can borrow Mama's copy if you want to see it."

"No, I believe you. Okay then... Hold me?" I asked gingerly, the only thing that I wanted was for him to comfort me.

Dimitri nodded and carried me to his bed. Slowly, we'd taken off our clothes, leaving me in only my tank and panties, and him in his boxers. Nothing happened- I had no desire to get frisky with thin walls and his granny in the house- we just held each other, but it felt so good. I laid next to him, and his arms around me promised me good things. I nestled into his chest and fell asleep to the soothing sensation his fingers running through my hair.

It had been a nice night.

Now, I pulled on some leggings and a comfy maternity sweater that I'd allowed Lissa to buy me. I flipped my hair upside down and pulled it into a quick top knot. As I was just ready to leave, I heard a timid knock on the door.

I opened it to see Viktoria; she was nervous. From the lip biting to the thumb twitching to the darting eyes, it was very obvious. I smiled gently and laid a hand to calm her twitching fingers. She jumped and looked up at me, holding a hand over her heart.

"Oh, you scared me, Rose." She said, shaky.

"I believe you were the one who came here," I retorted, raising an eyebrow, or at least trying.

She glared at me playfully. It was hard to believe that only twelve hours ago that glare wasn't so playful. "I, um, just wanted to know, if you, um, wanted to hang out today, probably?" She asked.

I was silent for a minute, and she must've interpreted it the wrong way. Her eyes widened. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry! Obviously you don't want to hang out. I'll just leave you then." Viktoria started to back away.

I moved to the hallway. "Viktoria, wait!" I called after her. She turned around, hopeful. "I…yeah, we can hang out today."

"Oh really, Roza?" She said. "You're the best!" Before I knew it, her arms were around me. "Oh, I'm sorry." She stepped back. "Sorry." She muttered again.

"It's okay," I told her genuinely. "Just let me eat something first?" I needed food if I was going to deal with someone so skittish. I couldn't believe this was the same girl who'd been trying to throw down with her brother in the front yard not even 24 hours prior.

She nodded. "Mama's just finished lunch. But if you want breakfast instead that's fine, too." She said, overly excited.

"Thank you. Do you know where Dimitri is?" I asked.

"He's downstairs with Paul. He came down a couple hours before you woke up. He said he'd let you sleep."

"Thank you, Viktoria."

"Call me Vika. It's what everyone does anyway, it's just easier." She smiled.

"Okay, Vika."

When I went downstairs, I found Dimitri and his nephew in the living room, along with his sister Karolina. "Good afternoon," he murmured against my neck when I sat down beside him.

"Morning, Comrade." I whispered back. He chuckled and kissing me gently, before wrapping an arm around my midsection and pulling me in.

"Eww." I heard. "Mama, Uncle Dimka and Aunt Rose are kissing." Paul made a face and we all laughed.

"Well then don't look, Paul." Karolina told him jokingly. Paul rolled his eyes at his mother and she muttered something in Russian then turned to me. "Good afternoon, Rose. I hope you had a good night."

"I did, thank you." I said, smiling back.

Just then, I noticed that Paul was standing on the other side of his uncle and whispering something in his ear. Dimitri's lip curled upwards. He muttered something back to Paul. Unfortunately it was in Russian, so I couldn't understand. Damn him and his refusal to teach me the language.

"Manners, Paul! You speak English around people who don't speak Russian. Don't pick up your uncle's bad habits." She glared pointedly at her brother.

Paul apologized, but he stared at me with wide eyes and what could only be described as utter fascination. It was so cute. Dimitri gently gave him a push and he stumbled over to me. I smiled at him.

"What can I do for you, Paul?" I asked him, ruffling his hair.

"Did you really kill two Strigoi all by yourself, Aunt Rose?" he blurted out.

I cringed, remembering Spokane. I think Karolina must have seen me because she chastised Paul not a second later. "Paul, that's not a very nice question."

"But it sure is an exciting one," Viktoria said, walking into the room with a glass in her hand.

Great. Now I was outnumbered, being cornered about my absolute least favourite story, and I still hadn't had so much as a sip of juice. This was not my day.

"It's okay, Paul, and yes, I did. You can't be a Guardian unless you can kill Strigoi, right?" I said, turning and showing him the two molnija marks that adorned my neck. I felt light touches; Paul was tracing them.

"Wow," he whispered, awestruck. Who could blame him? I was just like that at 10. I couldn't wait to kill Strigoi. Hell, I was like that right until I had to kill Strigoi.

"Don't worry, Paul, someday you'll have many more." I tickled him in the stomach and he laughed. My own words echoed around me, making me uncomfortable. I was talking about sending a ten year old out to kill. Sure, it was at some theoretical future point, but that didn't change anything. I was playing a part in this broken system, making a child excited to kill, just like they'd done to me.

Just like we'd do to our babies.

He was about to say something but was cut off by his grandmother announcing that lunch was ready. We all got up and headed into the kitchen where Olena smiled warmly at us. "Roza, how are you doing this morning?" she asked.

"I'm fine, Olena. Thank you." I was glad she hadn't brought up last night. "Lunch smells good." I told her, taking a seat beside Dimitri and Viktoria.

"Just wait until you try it," Viktoria said, helping herself to the various dishes situated on the table.

After a couple bites, it was obvious that this lady was an amazing cook. Thank god for Dhampir metabolism. I tried pacing myself, but I was starving from skipping dinner and breakfast. Soon I was saying, "Lunch was fantastic, Olena. Thank you so much. Dimitri was right; you're a great cook. Maybe you wouldn't mind sharing a few recipes?" I could get Sparky to use that Home Economics class after all.

Olena laughed. "Thank you, dear. Doesn't Dimitri ever cook for you? I taught him how to you know."

"Yeah, I'd starve without him," I joked. "But you're a way better cook." I stage-whispered to Olena.

I heard a gasp and I could only guess from whom. "Roza, you're going to pay for that."

I shrugged my shoulders at him, "Comrade, I know you better than that. You'd never let us starve. You're too sweet- your mother raised you right." I replied sweetly, in my best 'innocent' voice. Everyone at the table laughed.

"So, Rose, you're going to be a mother," Karolina said, timidly. And here goes the elephant in the room.

From beside me, I saw Dimitri shoot her a glare, one that said, 'what were you thinking? Knock it off.'

"It's okay," I said, addressing everyone's look of remorse. Only Paul looked like he was oblivious to what was going on. He sat there playing with his action figures quietly while he ate. Paul knew I was pregnant, but he didn't wonder why. It was more of like a state to him, something normal.

"Yes, I am."

"Are you ready?" Karolina asked again.

"I think I am. I mean, I'm never ready for anything but that's why I have Dimitri, right?" I wiped my hands on the napkin and placed them on my lap.

She smiled a sympathetic smile at me. "I remember when I had Paul. I was eighteen too, and completely scared out of my mind. I panicked when I first found out and didn't stop panicking until he got here." She laughed. "I was still a teenager and pregnant, you know? I wasn't ready for children yet, even though it was a completely normal age for us to start popping them out. I wanted to live my life, no restrictions, I didn't want to give up anything-"

The unease from before swept back in, and as I saw Paul playing with his action figures, I wondered if the Strigoi who would kill him was already changed or if they were still innocent- some Dhampir from school, maybe.

I couldn't hear properly; Karolina's words blurred together into a constant drone. Around me, the Belikovas started to shift, looking more and more menacing. Their utensils clattered and clanged like the steel of swords. Swords that Paul wasn't strong enough to use. My heart started to beat faster, and my breath came too quickly.

I stood carefully, focused on getting away without humiliating or hurting myself. "Excuse me for a moment." I mumbled, before heading quickly for the stairs.

I dashed to our room, closing the door and sinking to the floor. I crawled to the foot of the bed, pressing my flushed face to the cool sheets.

I was going to be a mother…I was going to be a mother. At eighteen. I can't do this…I…I was still a kid. I wanted to- It didn't matter what I wanted though, did it? You graduate, you're assigned someone to live for. You don't get to take a year off to backpack across Europe or choose a college- your whole life is catered to your Moroi. If you breed, it's because it's your duty, and you're expected to ship your kids to an academy the second they turn 5.

Promise marks. Combat classes. They Come First. Eternal Service, forever and ever, amen.

They were going to turn me into my mother.

I couldn't think straight. I couldn't… I grabbed the nearest object to me and held on, in the distance I heard my name being called out. I couldn't find it in me to respond, I couldn't find my voice. I put my head down and closed my eyes, surprised to find my body shaking.

Everything started spinning making my head hurt. My chest was so tight, it started to get hard to breathe. I needed to calm down, I needed-

_I can't, I can't, I can't…_

* * *

There were arms around me suddenly. I wasn't gasping for air anymore but my head was pounding and everything felt off-balance.

"What happened?" I asked warily.

"I don't know! You left the table and I found you in here. I think you had a panic attack. You didn't seem like you could hear me, and then you fainted. Roza, you scared me." Dimitri said, his hands going to my face. "Don't do that to me again."

I tried to brush his concern off, but I couldn't manage to smile.

Dimitri sat me on his lap and looked into my eyes. "Roza, what happened?" he asked. "What caused your attack?"

It was embarrassing, really. And it was stupid. I didn't want to voice my insecurities and have Dimitri judge me for them. I knew he never would, but I would judge myself if I put them into light. "It was nothing."

He sighed wearily. "Rose, you need to tell me what's going on. I can't help you if you don't, milaya."

I bit my lip and buried my face in his neck, inhaling his deep intoxicating smell. It calmed me somewhat. I swear, if it weren't for what I was getting, I would have my whole reproductive system removed if it meant I would have zero chance of getting pregnant. I immediately felt guilty for even having the thought. I wanted to be able to have Dimitri's children, so I get a miracle- two miracles- and I had a thought like that? I was such an ingrate!

Not a second later did the tears, hot and wet, start to fall out of my eyes and dampen Dimitri's skin.

He whispered in my ear, soothing me. "Please, moya lyubov', please let me in."

It was ironic. He here was, begging and pleading with me to let him in, just like I had the night of his panic attack when he came home. Not that he would ever call it a panic attack.

"Roza, Roza, look at me." He brought my face up to meet his. "I love you." He murmured.

Dimitri kissed me. Deeply and passionately. "Please tell me what's wrong," he asked when he pulled back.

I looked into his deep brown eyes, eyes that encouraged me to speak. "I can't do this, Dimitri." I whispered. "I can't be a mother. I can't, I don't know how…what if I end up like my mother? Oh my god… I'm going to end up like my mother and our kids will start resenting me. Oh god. And I'm eighteen, Dimitri I'm a teen mother. I can't do this, Dimitri, I just can't-"

"Will you shut up, Rose?"

Did he just talk to me like that? Did he just say what I think he said? I looked at Dimitri sharply. But all I saw was his good natured smile.

"Roza, you don't have to worry. In fact, I'm going to ban that kind of worrying from you." I raised an eyebrow at him. Dimitri continued. "You are going to be a fantastic mother. Do you know how I know? Because you love with all your heart, and you'd never let harm come to those who you love. You're willing to lay your own life on the line, so they can live. You spend your time with people who love you, and everything about you. You make people laugh, you pick them up, you're always there, and most importantly, you bring out the best in everyone. And that's what makes a fantastic mother. You, my love, are going to be the world's best mother because you'll love our children so much- and you learned from your mother's mistakes, so you'll let our children know they're loved."

"Really?" I asked quietly. "You really think I won't be a bad mom?"

"I really do, Roza. I really do."

"That doesn't change the fact that they'll want our babies to be Guardians. The Strigoi already want them, the Moroi have their entire lives planned out- they probably carve our tombstones the moment we're named. They're miracles, something special and unique and our world is going to destroy that!

"God, Dimitri, think about it! You were there, you saw how your family reacted, and they love you. All our lives, it's going to be the same. People thinking I'm a whore and you're an idiot. And it's worse if the wrong people believe you ARE their father, because then the babies will be test subjects!"

"Hush now." he said softly, wrapping me in his arms, "We'll deal with that when the time comes. Right now they're in the safest place in the world, tucked inside you where nothing can touch them. Let me protect you, Roza. Just focus on one day at a time. We'll win each battle as they come." He pulled back and gave me an encouraging smile.

I returned it timidly. "Will you be mad if I tell you I haven't really forgiven your family?"

He chuckled. "To be honest, I haven't either. Forgiveness takes time."

"I love you, Dimitri. You'll never know how much I love you." I whispered against his lips.

"I beg to differ, Roza. You'll never know how much I love you."

I smiled. "Thank you, Comrade. Thank you for loving me."

**So? What did you guys think? The next time we see each other won't be for a while, unfotunately. The next chapter is going slow, but I assure you it's going to be major drama, so you don't want to miss that! **

**Until next time, **

**Sarah :) **


	37. Chapter 37

**Hello my dear readers! I have updated **** and I hope you'll love it as much as I do! Just a quick thing, there are many POV switches in this chapter and it starts out with Rose's POV. Thank you to Spirit Quartz and CrystalCuCu-Mariarty for all their help. They're so great and I couldn't ask for anyone else!**

**Enjoy!**

"I'm going out with Vika today," I said as I slung my handbag over my shoulder and slipped on my shoes. Viktoria was already waiting out in the car. "I will see you later, Comrade."

My hand lingered on the doorknob, and I didn't know why. Maybe it was the lack of conversation from Dimitri this morning that had me on edge. Every time I tried to engage him in conversation, he'd reply with a one worded answer, a shrug, or a nod. I mean, Dimitri wasn't a talkative person, but today, it just seemed like he was purposely avoiding me.

I turned around to face him; he'd at least walked me to the door. If he'd walk me to the car, I couldn't say yet. I met his eyes, and saw worry in them…which was weird, because as far as I knew, he had nothing to worry about when it came to me.

"Comrade?" I asked. His eyes shifted and he seemed to be more focused. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing, Roza. Go have fun with my sister today." He said, shaking his head.

I crossed my arms. "It's not nothing: I can see it on your face."

Dimitri looked at me, his expression defiant, sort of condescending. "Don't go today, Roza. Vika will understand."

"And why on earth not?" I asked, confused.

Dimitri sighed exasperatedly, like we'd been through the same issue a million times. "Because you're tired."

"I wake up tired. I'm growing people, it takes work. A little tiredness never killed anybody. I can handle myself, Dimitri. You don't have to worry about me."

"That's just it, Roza. I do have to worry about you, because lately, it seems that you haven't been worrying about yourself."

I inhaled. "And what do I have to be worrying about, pray tell?"

"Your health." He said sharper than I think he intended it to be. "Look, for the past few weeks, you've been tired, Rose. Everyone can see it. Yet you push yourself to do all these things, to go out, and you're not thinking about what the consequences might be."

"And what might those consequences be, huh, Dimitri?"

"The pregnancy. Have you ever thought that maybe all this stress isn't good for them?" he said, pointing at the large hump. "You're tired, Roza, you're stressed. You need to take a break and relax."

"That's what I'm doing on this vacation. All I've been doing is relaxing. Or trying to, if people would quit picking fights with me. Haven't you ever thought that if I was back in the States with Lissa I would've been doing the same thing?"

"If you were back in the States with Lissa, you'd have been sitting in a classroom, being lectured to."

"Dimitri, I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself, and knowing what my limits are, okay? Yes, I've been a bit tired lately, but Dr. O said that's normal. I'm just powering through it. I've got to, or else I'll go stir crazy. I'm pregnant, not disabled!" I reasoned.

Dimitri didn't look as if he believed a word that came out of my mouth, but he sighed nonetheless after a few quiet moments, finally realizing that he'd lost a battle. His eyes still held that same amount of worry, and when he spoke, his voice told me that he'd surrendered, but he wasn't going to give up the fight.

"Fine," he muttered. "Go out with Vika today. But no more after that, okay?"

I smiled. "That is very sweet, Comrade, though I don't need your permission anyway."

Dimitri rolled his eyes. "It's not that I'm trying to prevent you from doing things, I'm just looking out for you, okay?"

I nodded. "By trying to prevent me from doing things. I get it, but you know you don't need to."

"I do, because I love you, and I care about you." His lips curled up.

"Aren't you the sweetest?" I leaned up and pressed my lips to his lightly, all our troubles at ease for now. Dimitri placed his hand on the back of my neck, as if to secure me in place, and titled my head to deepen the kiss. I moaned into his mouth when his tongue touched mine.

I was just about to delve deeper when a car horn blaring caused both of us to pull away at the loud noise. "Damn cock-blocking sister," Dimitri grumbled.

I couldn't help but laugh; it was such an un-Dimitri-like comment. "I better go, before she comes and sees what's taking me so long."

Dimitri nodded. "One more kiss first."

After a chaste kiss, I opened the front door and walked down the driveway. "Don't push yourself, Rose!" I heard as Viktoria backed out of the drive and I didn't try to erase the grin on my face.

**DPOV**

A run, is what I decided on to calm my nerves. A run, and then a phone call to Dr. Olendzki. I went upstairs and made my way to my room. As I entered, I couldn't help but sigh. Rose had already put her mark on this place. It's a good thing I loved her, or else I don't know how'd I'd put up living with her when she was so messy.

Smiling, I picked up the various things she'd left lying around: a bra on the doorknob, shorts on the floor, and my favourite, panties hanging from the dresser mirror. I wasn't even going to question how that got up there.

The adjoining bathroom was in a similar state with products and bottles taking up the whole counter. I closed the door after grabbing an elastic and headed back into the room in search of some proper workout clothes that didn't consist of a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

I quickly pulled on shorts and a shirt, and as I went to go pick up my phone from the bedside table, I noticed a note that had me stopping in my tracks. It was obviously Rose's, judging from the handwriting. It was a reminder for her to call…Adrian?

As I read on, my confusion and annoyance spiked higher, while I started to become frustrated. 'Discuss recent vision? Look into archives ASAP.'

What was going on? Rose had another vision and didn't tell me about it? But she was willing to tell him? What gave Adrian the right to know before me? Before the father?

_Maybe she didn't want you to leave again._

I breathed out and closed my eyes, willing my subconscious to leave me alone…But what if that had been the reason why she didn't tell me? What if Rose was worried I was going to walk out again?

Of course she's worried. You've done it before.

I rubbed my face before taking a seat on the bed. She didn't trust me.

Off to the back of my mind I heard my subconscious tell me: _She does. She just needs reassurance._

_How?_ I asked it back. I laughed. Maybe I was the one going stir crazy sitting in this house. I'd barely been out since we got to Russia.

_Talk,_ it said. I sighed before getting up and stuffing the note in my pocket. I'd deal with it later. Right now, I needed my run more than ever.

* * *

My run had done little to calm me…I was still on edge: first from worrying about Rose, to then finding about her secrets. I sighed and went into the kitchen to get a snack. As I was taking the leftovers from last night out of the fridge, the doorbell rang and I went to go get it.

The person that stood on the other side of the door was someone who I'd least expected to see, if I ever did expect to see her.

"Tasha?" I asked, very confused. "What are you doing here?"

Tasha, whom I still couldn't believe was standing on my door step, raised her eyebrows and said, "What are you doing here? Last time I checked you were still down at St. Vlads, getting a charge switch."

"Christian's…allowed me to take some time off to visit my family." I said. I was very sure that Christian didn't mind what I was doing at the current moment.

"Well, wasn't that nice of him," Tasha smiled. "Aren't you going to invite an old friend in, Dimka?"

I blinked. "Of course! Come in, Tasha. You'd think I'd forgotten my manners."

She giggled and moved past me, gently laying a hand on my arm as she went. "So where are Olena and the girls?"

"Mama is visiting some friends, and Sonya and Karo are at work."

Tasha nodded. "That's a shame. I would've loved to see Karolina." I had forgotten that she and Karo were friends. "But as they say, when one door closes, another one opens. And open indeed, because I got you."

Tasha waved her hand at me and smiled suggestively. It made my skin crawl. She couldn't just take a hint. I tried to force a smile on my face but judging from her reaction, I didn't do so well.

She shook her head. "So, how have you been, Dimka?"

And just like that, we fell into an easy conversation between two old friends. So easy, might I add, that I didn't even hear when the door opened and my sister and Rose came walking in, until they were standing in the doorway to the living room.

**RPOV**

When we got back from meeting Vika's friends at what passed for a mall here, there was a strange car parked outside.

"Oh shit." Vika muttered.

"What? What's wrong, who is that?" I asked, fingering the stake in my pocket anxiously.

"Uh, that's Tasha Ozera's car." Vika wrinkled her nose like she smelled something foul. I'm pretty sure I looked the same.

"You don't look like you like her."

"I'm sorry, that's probably bitchy, huh? She just makes me uncomfortable. She's had a crush on Dimitri since forever, and she just doesn't get it."

I nodded, thinking. "Vika, can I borrow your ring?"

She looked confused. "Sure, here."

Gold-plated. Nobody would look too close. I smiled and slipped it onto my left ring finger. Let the cow chew on that. I took a few deep breaths, gathering calm around me like armor.

Dimitri was too sweet to see what Tasha was doing. I had to be careful, or I'd look like a jealous shrew and she'd look like an innocent victim. I could do this. I'd beat her at her own game.

"Vika?"

"Yeah, Rose?"

"Whatever I say or do in there, play along."

She followed me out of the car. I smiled brightly, swinging my shopping bag and laughing as we walked in.

"That was great, Vika! I'm making you shop with me more often. Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't realize we had a guest! Hi, Tasha – you look great, how've you been?"

Sweet victory! Her eyes bugged out, obviously stunned that I was here. I walked up to Dimitri, purposely resting my left hand with the gold ring on his shoulder as I kissed his temple. While my mouth was against his ear and my hair hid my lips, I quietly breathed, "Stress is bad for the pregnancy, Dimitri." in a deadly tone. He froze under my hand.

"Rose! I didn't expect to see you... here." Tasha smiled, but it looked pained.

"Oh, you know how it is. We wanted to come see the family while we were taking such a big trip anyway."

It was true, every word. I didn't actually say it was a honeymoon. Tasha's eyes landed on the ring and she went pale, making the angry scars on her face stand out more.

I put my shopping bag down, and she eyed my midsection with pursed lips. Come on, come on...

Tasha laughed. "Oh, the first time we brought Christian here, he overate too. The food here can be a little heavy."

I heard Vika gasp softly behind me. She somehow made a tiny gasp sound like she'd said "Oh no she didn't!"

I was prepared though. I smiled kindly – no one was going to be able to say I made things worse, not this time.

"Actually, I'm pregnant, but thank you- it's been some time since someone thought my belly was small enough to be overeating! No wonder Christian adores you."

Tasha's plan had backfired. She'd been trying to rile me up, make me look like the codependent one. I could see the hamster that spun the wheel in her brain stop running, probably scratching it's ass as she fished for something to say.

"Congratulations, Rose. Who's the lucky father?"

"Oh, Dimitri is all the father any child could need." I said carefully, still smiling nicely.

Yeva. Yeva was Spirit-touched. Trying to use what I'd learned with Lissa, I screamed for Yeva in my head, begging for her help.

The weird thing was? I felt her answer.

"Sweetie," I turned my attention from Tasha to Dimitri, "I promised Yeva I'd be early for today's lesson, she'll be out for blood if I don't-"

I was cut off by the tiny old woman herself. She looked at Tasha for a moment, then turned to me.

_"Granddaughter, you're almost late. What did I tell you?"_

I listened to her voice in my head.  
_  
"That being on time is being five minutes late. I'm sorry, babushka, it won't happen again."_

I turned back to Tasha and Dimitri, who wore identical looks of shock.

"Sorry love, sorry Tasha. We'll have to catch up another time. I don't want to upset babushka." I kissed Dimitri's lips, waved to Tasha, winked at Vika and loped off after Yeva.

I followed her to a set of rooms I hadn't seen before and sat where she told me to.

"You did right to call me. Now you tell me what you know."

"I know she wants Dimitri."

"No, child. Not what you've seen, what you know. You used the power to call for me. Use it again."

I thought hard, trying to let Spirit lead me. As I searched, the magic hit me like a truck, and the words tumbled from my mouth, my eyes unfocused.

"Soon. She's dangerous, has plans. She's among the Lost, in the darkness. She... hates."

"Good. You see. The magic is like a muscle, Roza. You must train it. Now get that devil out of my house."

**DPOV**

I was sure I was having one of Roza's visions, or maybe dreaming. My grandmother had no plans with Roza. What was going on?

Tasha tried smiling at me again. "I wasn't aware Yeva spoke English."

Vika cut in, joining us at the table. "She only does it for special occasions. She really loves Rose, she's been teaching her all kinds of things."

What was happening? Since when? And how did my sister know?

"Dimitri, I don't understand. Why do you have a student with you?"

Vika beat me again, laughing like Tasha had told a hilarious joke. "She's not a student! Roza's family. She's my big brother's little schmoopy-poo." Vika sang in a teasing voice.

I couldn't help but smile at her antics.

Tasha looked like she'd been punched in the gut. She looked at me with wide eyes. "Is it true, Dimka?" she asked in a small voice.

"Neither of us have ever said that precise word," I flashed Vika a playful glare, "I doubt I could even spell it. But yes, Roza and I are together: a family."

"Is that why you turned down my offer? All those times?" she asked, her voice still small.

"It is. I'm in love with Rose, and what you wanted, I could never give you, Tasha." I said, not all sorry, but a bit sympathetic since she was still my friend.

Her glare from before returned, and once again, she steeled herself. "Well then, I hope you know what you've given up, Dimka. I could've given you love, I could've given you a family."

"He's already got one, you dumbass."

"Vika, that's enough. Be polite." I chastised. She just shrugged her shoulders.

Tasha gasped, and her voice was dripping with disgust when she spoke. "How can you stand being with her, raising a bastard whose father she probably can't even identify?" When she spoke it was like she was comparing Rose to the trash.

"Tasha!" I had already lost my patience with her. "That's enough. I know exactly what I'm doing, and I'm only going to say this once – do not talk about her like that in my presence, or don't be in my presence."

Her expression turned momentarily panicked before her demeanour changed sickly sweet. "I'm sorry, Dimka. I was just caught off guard. I... I'm happy for you." Her lips twisted, it looked like it physically hurt her to say the words.

"Dimitri, sweetie? Babushka wants us to set her new laptop up so she can Skype with us when we get home. I'm sorry to interrupt, Tasha, but if we don't move fast she'll start with the 'I'll be dead before it's set up' thing again." Rose was smiling, rolling her eyes, but I could see tension in her shoulders.

"Sure, Milaya, I'll be right there. Let me just see Tasha out."

"It was nice to see you again, Tasha! Come by anytime!" Rose called before turning back to my grandmother's room.

What the hell was going on?


	38. Chapter 38

**I'm here! Thank you for all the reviews, favourites and follows last chapter! I cant believe we've reached over 300 followers! That's crazy! And I owe it all to two special ladies who have made it possible. **

**Shout outs to CrystalCuCu-Mariaty for checking this chapter over. And another to my technical advisor, SpirtQuartz, who helps me so much by adding in her thoughts of wisdom. Thank you, my dear, for helping me write the first half of this chapter. Without them, I'd be a hopeless mess :D you ladies are heaven sent! **

**I hope you enjoy! **

"Roza, you were amazing out there," Dimitri said, trying for wonder as we walked into Yeva's main room.

"Mmm." I replied, thinking of what I needed to say, looking for the right words.

"Okay, babushka, what do you need help with?" Dimitri said nervously as we walked into his grandmother's room.

Yeva sat in her rocking chair in the corner, hands clasped as she eyed her grandson up and down. "There is none so blind as he who will not see. You sit with a viper and expect it not to strike."

He turned to look at me, going pale when he saw the look on my face, "What's going on, babushka?"

I bit my lip. "Dimitri. You and I have some talking to do." I looked over to Yeva. "Do you mind if we're alone for a while? I don't want to embarrass your grandson."

Yeva laughed and said to Dimitri, "I like her. Keep her…if you can. Grandson, tell her about the turtle and the scorpion. You need a reminder."

Yeva got up and moved over to the door closest to her and opened it, and walked into another room. I thought that was the closet? I shook my head and returned my attention to the man in the room. He was looking down, like the hardwood floors were the most interesting thing he'd ever seen, and rocking back and forth on his heels.

"Sit down, Dimitri." I said crisply. He quickly took a seat in Yeva's chair. I inwardly rolled my eyes at how fast he listened to me. Now he's worried about upsetting me? I so badly wanted to control my emotions and not let them let loose. So, so badly. It was physically painful.

But this was my lover, my partner, the father of my children and I planned to spend my life with him. As much as I wanted to scream and let the anger out, I had to treat him right. I certainly didn't want to be one of those psycho girlfriends who is so consumed with jealousy that I wanted to micro-manage his life.

I breathed deeply, rubbing the curve of my son's knee where it was pushing out, making my stomach feel lumpy.

"Why was she here, Dimitri? You know I'm not comfortable with her."

"Forgive me, you didn't tell me when you'd be coming home. Tasha is my friend, I couldn't just tell her to leave."

"You could have. All you had to do say was, 'Tasha, please leave.' Not that hard."

"What's your problem with her, Rose?"

Really? Really? Yeva was right, he was blind. I tried to keep calm, but my voice raised: not quite shouting. "Do you not know how that woman feels about you? And yet you still encourage her!"

"Why would you even say something like that, Rose? Why would I ever, in a million years, encourage her?"

"I love you, Dimitri. You're so sweet, so honest. You don't realize you're doing it, do you? She wants you, you know that. Women like her don't just take a clue. They need you to outright say you don't want them."

"I'm sorry if I didn't make my intentions with her clear before. I'm pretty sure they're very clear after that little show you put on." Dimitri said sarcastically.

I inhaled sharply. "How dare you? Five minutes ago you were saying how amazing I had done. I wasn't rude, nasty or cruel. I didn't slap her into next week when she called me fat, though your sister considered it. You weren't defending me or stopping her – though you should have. She is your friend, after all. I did what I had to in order to protect myself, to protect them! Do you have any idea what people will think of me now? Hell, I'm not even sure if I'll be able to return to Court because I'm such a slut."

"Don't." Dimitri said very low. "Don't say that."

"Why not, Dimitri? I'm the one who's keeping it real here. All this time, you've had this delusion that my pregnancy will be accepted by everyone, even your family. And look what happened there. Those are people who adore you – Dhampir women who have children out of wedlock themselves! I'm a Dhampir, Dimitri. I'm a Dhampir, I'm eighteen, I'm pregnant, and once Tasha tells everyone that I married my mentor, I'm even more than a whore. I might as well go live in a commune and let the Moroi feed off me so I can get high. It's not going to get easier, Dimitri."

"You're right," he conceded. "I did have a delusion that your pregnancy would be easy. Sometimes I forget the fact that you're only eighteen, and I was your mentor before. I will talk to Tasha and ask her to keep quiet."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Dimitri, no matter how much you beg, Tasha is not going to listen to you. I know women like her like I know the back of my hand."

"So then what do we do, Roza? Please tell me, because I am not going to let any of what you said happen to you. I am not going to let anything happen to our children. I need to know how to fix this, and I need you to tell me, because I don't know."

I felt my heart break. Dimitri's words were broken, and by the end, his voice was almost a whisper. He really didn't know what to do and it was killing him.

I sighed and motioned for him to come over. I crawled up in his lap when he sat down on the bed. "What we do best," I said quietly. "We'll power through it, together."

Dimitri rested his chin on the top of my head. "I don't take you for granted for a second, Roza. You know that right?"

I nodded, though I disagreed. I knew he took me for granted sometimes. It's human nature. "I hope you know that I trust you and love you so much that I've given every part of myself to you, wholly and fully."

It was quiet for a few moments before Dimitri spoke again. But his words were broken, his voice cracking and unsure. "Do you really? Trust me?"

I turned in his arms so fast that my head and his chin collided, painfully. But that didn't matter as I looked up into his eyes and saw his sadness at the thought of me not trusting him wash over.

"Dimitri…I just told you I did. I mean, how-how could you ever think that I don't?"

He didn't answer me but reached in his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. I caught a flash of it and my stomach took a trip down south before he handed it to me. "Because of this," he said, putting the note in my hands.

I didn't have to read it to know what it said; the words were burned into my mind. I squeezed my hand into a fist, squishing the paper in my palm.

"Dimitri," I began.

Dimitri interrupted by putting a finger to my lips and halting any words that I had coming next. "Roza, why?" That simple word conveyed so many emotions, and it showed me just how much he thought I distrusted him. "Why would you go to him, and not to me? Is it-is it because I left last time?" He squeezed his eyes shut, and took a deep breath.

I hesitated upon seeing his pain, but answered confidently. "Yes. But not as a punishment, Dimitri. Not because I don't trust you. You're so anxious, and I don't want to stress you out more, but I can't take it if you walk out on me again. Adrian is in a position to access old records that might have answers.

"Dimitri, think about it. Why would I risk you running off in Siberia, upset over something you don't understand and can't control, while you're visiting your family? When we have friends at home who can actually find the information we need?"

He hung his head, his hair falling into his face. He nodded silently.

"Dimitri, what was Yeva saying about scorpions?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

He sighed, raising his head to look at the ceiling, reciting from memory. "There was a wide river, and a scorpion was on one side, but he wanted to go to the other side. There was a turtle nearby, and the scorpion asked the turtle if he would take the scorpion across on his back. The turtle knew that if the scorpion stung him, they'd both die, but because the scorpion couldn't swim, he agreed.

"Halfway across the river, the scorpion stung the turtle. As they were dying, the turtle asked, 'But why?' The scorpion replied, 'It's my nature."

He fell silent, and I considered the story.

Yeva didn't trust Tasha, that was clear. But how dangerous was she if Yeva felt like she needed to warn us?

I grasped Dimitri's hand, and looked into his eyes. "Dimitri, you have to talk to her. Do anything you must. Remember that night in the cabin? The first night?" I asked.

"Of course, Roza, how could I forget?"

"That night, you said you would protect me. Well, I don't need you to protect me, but please, do what you must to protect them," I said, placing on of his hands on my tummy.

"Always," he whispered. "Always, milaya. Nothing will ever harm these two as long as I live. I'll talk to Tasha. I'll tell her to keep quiet."

"Thank you." I smiled a little and pressed my lips to his. It was short and sweet and when I pulled back, I rested my head on his shoulder.

The darkness I'd seen in Tasha was unsettling; and the uneasiness set in, in the bottom of my stomach, resting low and painfully obvious. I'd felt her; and what I felt wasn't good, not good at all. I'd felt darkness before, and this was nothing like it. The blackness that lingered in Tasha was even more slippery, more malicious that anything I could've imagined.

Before I could continue to speculate what I had witnessed, the door opened and Yeva walked back into the room. "Come," she said to me.

I pulled out of Dimitri's embrace and got up to go follow his grandmother. Dimitri stood to follow and Yeva stopped him with a glare.

"Not you. You need to think more about the scorpion. And grandson... if ever again someone attacks your woman or children, I expect you to treat them as you did your father. Even if it's your own family. They depend upon you. You've disappointed me today."

Dimitri looked crestfallen, but nodded. "I understand. I'm sorry Roza, babushka."

I didn't have time to answer as she led me into the room she'd just been in, and contrary to my first belief, it was not a closet, but a small workroom with various bottles lining the shelves and two comfortable looking wingback chairs sitting in the middle of the room on a plush rug. It was all very simple, and yet, it held an air of magic.

"Take a seat, child." Yeva said, pointing at one of the chairs. Once we were sitting, Yeva spoke again. "You need to harness your power and use it correctly."

"How?" I asked.

"I told you it was like a muscle. You need to train it." She said simply like that was all the explanation I needed.

"Like my training to become a Guardian." I concluded.

Yeva nodded. "Yes. What you did before is only the beginning. You need to achieve your full potential before time runs out."

I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean, before time runs out?"

Yeva looked at me knowingly. "You know. I have seen it."

My stomach plummeted once more. The Strigoi. I let out a shaky breath. "So your visions are real?" I asked her, the question coming out more like a statement. "Sorry that was uncalled for. I'm just a little stressed. That happens when you have no idea how to protect your unborn children whom the evil bloodsucking monsters are hell bent on taking from you.

"And when you're so tired, some days you can barely stand but you power through it and try not to let the love of your life and the father of your children know. Oh and when his family judges you even though they have no right too. And the woman who's been chasing after my man for forever just shows up randomly in the middle of our vacation and I find out that she has darkness in her, and she's very very bad.

"You know, those things can make you just a teeny bit stressed out." By the time I finished my rambling rant, the tears were openly streaming down my face and I was overheating. And when I held up my hand to show Yeva my pinched fingers, it was shaking.

I took a deep breath and let it out, and repeated it ten more times, feeling myself calm down with every breath.

"I'm sorry, Yeva. I have no idea where that came from." I told her sincerely.

Yeva nodded. "You know exactly where it came from, granddaughter. Fear is a strong thing, and you of all people should know. It roots into your mind and spreads to even the deepest parts, causing you to act irrational, and even worse, think irrationally."

"So you've really accepted me, huh? I'm…granddaughter," I said, with a smile. Yeva looked at me, fully knowing that I was avoiding what she'd just said. I sobered up. "How do I stop it, Yeva, please tell me."

"Roza, nothing worth having ever came easily. It will do you good to remember this. The road ahead of you will be long and hard. It will push you to your limits, you will be tested. You need to experience the rough, before you can have anything worth having. You know what you need to do. Think, child, time is running out."

I groaned in frustration and resisted the urge to pull at my hair. "I know, okay? I know time is running out, you don't have to keep reminding me."

Instead of being offended by my tone of voice, Yeva smiled cheekily. "Think of it as motivation."

I rolled my eyes. "What do I need to do?" I asked, getting back on topic, if I ever was.

"How did you see through Natasha?"

"I told you. Darkness, hate, the likes."

"How, Roza, how? That is my question. If I wanted to know what you saw, then I would've asked you what you saw. And I believe you answered that a couple minutes ago." She said all smart-alecky.

Pursing my lips, I said, "I envisioned the Spirit like it was a living being and projected it towards her."

Yeva nodded as if she already knew this and motioned with her hand for me to continue.

"It surrounded her. It was like she was trapped within a net of mirrors and I could see her every reflection in the glass."

Finally, she nodded a single time, and I knew I had gotten it right. She spoke a single sentence, but it was just as cryptic as ever. "You know what you need to do."

I pursed my lips again, and slapped my thighs before getting up and pacing the room. "That's the problem, Yeva, I don't know what I need to do!" I said, throwing my hands up in the air.

"You do."

I turned to look at her. "Do I? Do I really?" I asked and then immediately regretted my tone of voice.

But once again, instead of getting offended by the way I talked to her – like she was supposed to – Yeva sat calmly, and looked at me, waiting until I figured it out.

"Roza, think. Apply what you know to the situation."

Apply what I know to the situation. Apply what I know. What I know. What do I know? I know that I can manipulate Spirit. I knew that I saw through Tasha. How did I see through her? Every part of her reflected off-

Then it clicked and I had a moment of epiphany. I could finally breathe, and see things clearly! I'd been so stupid and blind before!

"I have to look at the situation. I have to look at it like I looked at Tasha!" I exclaimed in giddiness. It soon faded away as I thought of something else. "What is the situation?"

"The power can only be used with faces and people that have been near it." Yeva said from the corner. I'd temporarily forget about her.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You have seen one other." She said.

I racked my brain, and then it felt as if the air had been knocked out of me.

Nathan.

**Egad! What have I done? :D **

**Let me know how I did and review! **


	39. Chapter 39

**Hey guys...I'm still alive, as it turns out. I thought school would've killed me already but it didn't so here I am! I can't apologize enough for the long wait, it's been over a month I think, but I hope this chapter makes up for it! Thank you to two amazing people who helped me so much, SpiritQuartz, my technical advisor, and CrystalCuCu-Mariarty, my beta. **

**Enjoy!**

I gasped as I fell back in the chair in utter, abject horror. I dove in immediately, not even pausing to consider the consequences. I closed my eyes as I searched for the Spirit within me, and latched onto the magic as soon as I found it. Taking a deep breath, I pictured Nathan's face: his being, in my mind; it was clear as day right down to the conniving smirk. I could still remember his words – hear them just as clearly as the first time he spoke them.

I willed Spirit to do my bidding, and it wrapped around him like a blanket, cloaking him in net of mirrors; mirrors that allowed me to see right through him. I spent a long time on each one, searching for anything, but all I saw was his reflection, his outer representation of him. And that wasn't helpful. I already knew what he looked like. I didn't need to be reminded a second time.

Screaming in frustration, I reluctantly let go of Spirit and was welcomed by a splitting headache and the ever present ghosts. I groaned and called on the power once more to repel them, but no matter how hard I tried, no matter how deep I dug, they barely moved from the positions they were in.

"_Rose_."

I heard whispers of my name but refused to open my eyes and look at them.

"_Rose_."

I shook my head, praying that they would leave me alone.

"_Rose_."

The voice was familiar... I knew it. And once I realized who it was, I opened a little part of my mind to let him through. That alone had me crying out in pain.

"Rose," he whispered.

Taking a deep breath, I braced myself before opening my eyes to see Andre, or rather his ghost. I tried to call out to him, but no words were coming out. I tried again, and when my voice failed, I cupped a hand around my throat in worry.

"You can't speak." Andre said. "Listen, Rose, you can't use Spirit again, not unless you want to end up like me."

Andre smiled. "They are already mad at you, Rose, and they won't hesitate a second time. You need to let go. Find another way."

Despite my vocal loss, I still yelled out to Andre, who was already fading away, and fast. I screamed until my lungs burned, and my chest heaved, gasping for much needed oxygen.

The headache was becoming worse, and black dots started dancing in my vision. I had to let go before I passed out.

Focusing, I used all my willpower, and then some, before delving deep and giving it all I had. I was not going to let Spirit keep me bound in its tight reins. It trapped me; I was the one now in the gilded cage, the ghosts having turned on me and using my power against me.

I was going to get out, and if it was the last thing I did, then so be it.

Thankfully, it didn't come to that.

* * *

Two days later we were just about ready to jump on a plane and head back to the States. After my lesson with Yeva had taken a wrong turn, I'd completely worn myself out to the point of exhaustion, and Dimitri telling me he 'told me so' didn't help at all.

That was a slight exaggeration: he didn't exactly tell me, he was too much of a nice guy for that, but I could see it in his eyes.

The vast amount of Spirit I'd used hadn't retreated until the following morning when I nearly feel down the stairs trying to stay upright and off my face. In that moment, I decided we were leaving the next day, cutting our vacation short by three days.

Dimitri hadn't stopped hovering, and tried to change my mind about flying. Yes, I finally entered my third trimester, but I was only a day in. He used the excuse that I couldn't fly, and we'd make the journey home in a few days when I felt better. My response was that if we didn't leave tomorrow, we'd never leave. I shut down the conversation right there and told him to leave and ask Viktoria to come in. I needed someone I could speak with if I was going to stay strapped to a bed for 24 hours, and I sure wasn't going to spend it by reassuring and possibly yelling at every sorry and concern Dimitri threw my way. So I banished him until the night.

Now a day later, I was ready to leave this babymoon behind.

"Promise you'll call."

"I promise."

"And Skype."

"Of course."

Viktoria nodded and bit her lip before pulling me into a bear hug, and holding me close. Well, as close as she could get with my massive bump in the way.

"I'm going to miss you so much, Roza."

"And not your brother?"

We both pulled back to see Dimitri with a hand on his heart, playing hurt. Viktoria rolled eyes at him before responding. "You know what I mean. Of course I'm going to miss you."

"I know," he smiled cheekily. "I'm just playing with you." Dimitri ruffled her hair before going outside to put the last suitcase in the rental.

It was bittersweet going back to the States, but if I was being completely honest, it was more sweet than bitter. I was ready to go home, put my feet up and relax. I was so done with all the drama that we'd encountered. Maybe the next time we came to visit, Russia would leave a better impression on me.

Dimitri came in two minutes later. "All ready?" He asked me.

As if his statement had triggered it, Olena and the rest of the girls came rushing into the front hall. We were bombarded with hugs and kisses and promises of coming back and staying in touch.

"You'll call me as soon as they come," Olena whispered as she wrapped her arms around me and I did the same.

"Of course," I smiled at her. "Only a couple more weeks until little Lesya and Evan come into the world."

She placed a comforting hand on my stomach, and much to her surprise and delight, two little kicks fluttered under her palm. "They already know their Babushka," I said.

Olena looked up and smiled, tears glistening in her eyes. She hastily wiped at them and laughed joyfully. "Thank you, Roza."

I grinned and Olena moved over to tell her son goodbye. I overheard her threatening him to visit soon.

After hugs from Sonya, Karolina, Paul, and one last one from Viktoria, we were just about ready to walk out the door before I remembered something. "One minute, I think I might've forgotten something upstairs. I'll be right back."

Dimitri gave me a knowing look before I waddled off in the direction of the stairs. But instead of going up, I took the right and knocked on the door before entering.

Yeva was sitting peacefully in her rocking chair, hands clasped, and eyes closed. "Granddaughter," She said simply.

"I came to say goodbye...again." Both Dimitri and I had exchanged our farewells with his grandmother last night, privately. But now, I wanted to say it again, this time, only me.

Yeva nodded and I continued. "And thank you, again, for everything you've done for me."

"I didn't do a thing for you."

"But you did. You helped me discover this amazing power and helped me use it. Even though I can never again access it willingly."

Yeva nodded once more. "Well then, I must say goodbye. Until next time, and remember, time is running out."

"Thank you," I whispered as I walked out.

As I made my way back to the front, I remembered Dimitri's words from a few days ago. I really had come to like Yeva by the end of this vacation.

"Ready, Comrade?" I asked.

"Let's go, Roza." He smiled back.

As we backed out of the driveway, another string of goodbyes came from his family. Dimitri found my hand across the console and laced my fingers through his, and that was the way we planned to start this new chapter of our story: together.

* * *

From the moment we touched down in Pennsylvania after a twenty four hour long flight with a layover, Dimitri slipped into his guardian mask. I tried my best to imitate his and steeled myself for the coming days where we'd be put under pressure and would receive more than our fair share of heat.

During our last night at the Belikov household, I'd told Dimitri of the conversation I'd had with Adrian three days prior. It taken me a few hours, and all my energy, to calm Dimitri down after he had heard every explicit detail of my recount:

_"This is getting pretty intense." _

_I snorted. "That's one way of putting it." _

_Adrian shrugged in accordance and sat down on the bench patting the seat beside him, and I took a seat underneath the rose tresses. _

_"Can you do me a favor?" I asked. _

_"May I ask what this favor is? For all I know it could be you wanting me to stop right now and give you the most amazing sex of your life." Adrian wiggled his brows. _

_The punch I landed on his arm was completely justifiable in my opinion. I rolled my eyes when he gave me a 'what was that for' look and rubbed his arm. _

_"Stop being such a wuss – it was barely even a slap." I chastised before taking a deep breath, "Can you look out for Tasha?" _

_"Why?" Adrian asked, confused. "How does she come into play?" _

_"She showed up at Dimitri's house a couple days ago claiming she was there to visit his sisters and mother. I'm not buying it. Something's fishy. I mean, how on Earth could she have possibly known that we were in Russia that week?"_

_"Maybe she was genuinely taking a vacation." _

_"And I genuinely believe that you'll give up your smoking and drinking for good. Adrian, c'mon!" _

_Adrian looked away, and I knew something was up._

_"Well there is a rumor going around Court. It's not so bad now that we've all done some damage control. Your dad is wicked powerful, did you know?" _

_"Yeah, he's a mob boss feared by the Vampire world. Now what rumor? Adrian!" _

_He held his hands up. "Please don't kill me. You're pregnant and took a supposed extra training field trip immediately following graduation with your mentor who you're really sleeping with." _

_"Well it's not really a rumor if it's true, right?" I said, reverting to sarcasm and humor. _

_"People have been calling you a slut and accused you of whoring around." _

_"Eh," I shrugged it off. "That's what they've been saying for years." In truth, this bothered me more than it should've. I'd made a good reputation for myself; I spent the past few months trying to gain back the respect of dhampirs and Moroi alike I'd lost because of something I didn't do. _

_I hadn't even realized Adrian kept talking until he said what I feared the most. "The worst part is that it's a dhampir who impregnated you." _

_No, no, no... This couldn't be happening. _

_It was going to come out sooner or later, why not sooner? My subconscious pointed out. _

_We were going to hide it. Say it was a Moroi, and Dimitri was raising it. They'd still be dhampir babies. Dr. O assured us..._

_Dr. O. She was the only one, save for the people who we'd told, who knew the truth. She wouldn't betray us like that. I was sure of it.  
_

_"Rose, are you okay?" _

_"No, Adrian. I'm not okay. You need to stop these rumors as soon as possible. No-one, and I mean no-one, can know that the biological father is Dimitri. I will not have them experimented on like lab rats and taken away from me." _

_"I'll try my best," Adrian promised. _

_"Don't try. Do." I said urgently. "Fuck, use compulsion if you have to. This is life and death, Adrian."_

_Adrian nodded and I worked on calming my breathing down the way Dimitri had shown me. Deep breaths in and out, focus on the air, imagining it as a living thing, moving in and out-_

_"May I?"_

_I opened my eyes to see Adrian looking at me, and holding his hand out._

_When I decided I was not going to blow another fuse, I nodded and his palm came in contact with my stomach. I instantly relaxed from the warmth radiating off his Spirit touch._

_"What's the prognosis?" I asked once he pulled back. _

_"Their auras are bright, brighter than I've ever seen them." He paused, obviously struggling if to say the next part or not. I gently prompted him on. "Rose, yours is dim...dimmer than I've ever seen it before. It's fading away. It's like your aura is giving itself up to your babies."_

_I frowned, not sure what to do with that information at the moment. "Well I am giving life to my children?" I said, trying for a smile. _

_Adrian just looked at me. "Rose, I've only ever seen these auras on certain types of people. Those who are dying." _

As you can imagine, Dimitri came to the same conclusions as I did, and sensibility went through the roof as soon as I told him. After that, I'd told him that was all Adrian and I had talked about. I didn't mention the last part of our conversation for obvious reasons. Right now, I decided I would be the one to handle this, and I would decide what I was going to do with the information.

In the meantime, Adrian had promised to go look into the archives, and he said he'd take everyone with him. When we touched down at the airport, it'd be day number three of the search, and I was anxious to start helping and figure out this mystery.

But first, I'd have to face the accusations, the insults, the heat. And I was feeling the pressure. I wasn't going to let their cruel words that I knew were coming break me down. I didn't let that happen at the Academy, and I sure as hell wasn't going to let it happen now.

Gripping Dimitri's hand tightly, we walked through the public airport we'd opted to take instead of Abe's private jet. It would've been safer for sure, especially now that I officially entered the first week of my third trimester. But this trip was supposed to be just me and Dimitri, and us finally relishing in the fact that we no longer had to hide, and what better way to do that, than to do things publicly?

And so, I was bombarded with hugs from Lissa as soon as we walked out those customs doors. I didn't have any time to prepare, and I didn't even see her before she wrapped her arms around me.

"I've missed you so much, Rose!"

"I've missed you too, Lissa."

"It was hard not talking to you every day."

I looked at her. "Lissa, we talked every night." I said pointing to her forehead.

"It's not the same as talking face to face."

"You're right." I linked arms with her and we started moving towards the exit, temporarily forgetting about her Guardian detail. I turned to Lissa and motioned to the three guardians standing inconspicuously around the waiting area. She shrugged.

I scanned the area again, falling into the role of her guardian and spotted sandy blond hair and a cheeky grin. "Eddie!"

He walked over to me and I met him in the middle. I grabbed him in a hug. "Rosie, how are you?"

"I'm great. Don't call me Rosie." Eddie chuckled and pulled back. He whistled when he looked down.

"Yes I know. I've gotten bigger. I can't even see my toes anymore, it sucks."

Lissa laughed and I glared at her. "Just wait until you're pregnant, missy. You won't even remember what your own feet look like."

"Princess, Castile, Roza, the car is ready." I hadn't even noticed that Dimitri had left, because all the bags were out of his hands. He smiled and laced his fingers through mine.

"Aww," I heard Lissa squeal. "They're so cute! Eddie aren't they so cute?"

"Very," he said, humoring Lissa's antics. "I don't think I've ever seen Belikov smile."

I rolled my eyes. "He only smiles at the things he likes. Isn't that right, Comrade?"

Dimitri smiled. "Of course, Roza."

* * *

"Rose!" I heard my name being called out as I stepped out of the car. I turned in the direction of the voice to see my mom looking very happy to see me.

"Mom," I said, and waddled over to her. I was surprised when she was the one to initiate the hug, and said something that up to five months ago, would never have dreamed of saying. "I've missed you too, Mom."

She pulled back to look at me but still held on. "You're even bigger, Rose."

"They're not going to stay the same size forever, mom."

She laughed. "I know, Rosemarie."

I looked over her shoulder and saw Abe clap Dimitri on the back before coming over to us. "Kizim," he smiled. "You look beautiful."

"Trying to rack up brownie points, old man?"

Abe laughed. "If it works. Now, aren't you going to give your old man a hug?"

I shrugged before wrapping my arms around him. I said I'd try, and I would. I was facing Dimitri's back as I hugged Abe. His posture was rigid, hands clenched in fists at his sides. Unfortunately, I couldn't see what was in front of him but I didn't have to know what was going on.

I quickly unwrapped myself from my father's embrace and moved over to Dimitri, grabbing one of his hands in both of mine. I uncurled his fingers and laced our hands together. "Comrade?" I asked.

No response. I looked over to see two Moroi women looking at us, the disgust clear as day as they watched on. Their mouths were moving a mile a minute and it wasn't hard to guess what they were saying, even without the enhanced hearing we dhampirs had. And it infuriated me to no end but I had experience dealing with shit like this, and I wasn't going to let two bigoted Moroi with sticks up their asses and enough money to bathe in ruin me, and more importantly, Dimitri.

Because if his self control broke, everything was going to hell in a hand-basket.

I hurriedly moved in front of him, and pulled his attention away from them, and on to me. I searched his chocolate brown eyes and smiled. "It's going to be alright, Dimitri."

I took his free hand and placed it on my belly. His face softened just a bit. "We knew this would happen. But we can't let them get to us." I reached up and stroked his cheek.

"Comrade, I know what it's like. Yes, it's not fun being ridiculed and cheapened, but we have to focus on us and show them that we don't care even if we do. And by God, Dimitri, I just want to go and punch their stupid little faces but the only way we're going to stop the talking is by showing them that we're the bigger people.

I love you, Dimitri, and that's never going to change. I made my mind up a long time ago and no one is going to take you away from me, or me away from you, and I'm certainly not going to let some people gossiping decide our fate."

Dimitri closed his eyes and took a breath before answering. "When did you get so smart, Roza?"

"I've always been. You were too busy making me run laps to notice."

He smiled and brought me closer, "I love you, and I'm not going to let anything happen to you, or to our children. I promise."

I nodded, smiling at his affectionate tone, and rested my head on his chest. "I know. I love you, Dimitri." Pulling back, I grabbed his hand and tugged him along in the direction of our new house. "Let's go home."

**Thank you to all those who stayed with me...I really appreciate it! :) I can't say how much I love you guys! I'd give you a million hearts if Fanfiction would let me. Anyways, the next chapter will hopefully be up in a few weeks and I hope you'll stick around to find out what happens next! **

**Love you all! :) **


	40. Chapter 40

**Look who's updating! **

**It's been four months, I think? I can't apologize enough for that but life got in the way. School started spending up going from zero to ten in a second, some family members recently feel sick and I've been in a funk. **

**Nonetheless, I can't thank everyone who's still been reading and asking me when and if I'm still continuing It doesn't Always Go According To Plan. **

**The answer is always yes, but sometimes things don't always go according to plan. I can't promise you all regular updates but I am going to make a bigger effort to update for you guys. It's my New Years Resolution. :D **

**Alrighty, a quick thank you to CrystalCuCu-Mariarty for being the beta. And a quickly shout out to SpiritQuartz, if you are reading this, I hope everything works out soon :) **

**Okay, now that's over, I hope you guys enjoy this!**

"Fucking shit!"

I groaned and the razor landed on the floor with an audible click. I grabbed the towel and wiped the shaving cream off me, sitting down on the shower bench for support. On a good day, my body was callisthenic enough to twist in odd angles to move around the bump and shave. But damn, it was getting hard and tiring.

"Rose? Are you alright?"

I heard Lissa's voice coming through the door and her fists knocking on the solid wood.

"I'm fine, Liss. I'll be out in a minute." I called back and got up, finishing my shower. When I got out, before I got dressed, I couldn't help but notice myself in the mirror.

I smiled to myself as I placed a hand on my burgeoning stomach and rubbed gently. No wonder I couldn't shave; there was no way I could've seen down below with my huge belly in the way.

One of the twins kicked in response and I grinned when I saw the tiny foot protrude slightly through the skin.

Every day and every kick was becoming stronger; some had even started leaving bruises that hadn't faded yet. It was funny, when we were in Russia and before the trip, the kicks never left any marks, but as soon as we came to Court, the intensity had increased enough to leave my skin discolored in some places. It was almost like the twins sensed the turbulence at Court.

I sighed; it was no wonder. My stress had probably become their stress. It was hard being cooped up in this house all day for most days a week…which was my doing. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful house, one that I owed my father. But this behavior wasn't me.

I was used to being out and about, staying busy. Now, my days consisted of me either sleeping or watching some mindless television and spending my days with Lissa and nights with Dimitri as he worked in the days.

Dimitri had picked up some shifts a week ago. When I complained that it wasn't fair, he gently reminded me I was almost seven months pregnant and I gently reminded him that being pregnant was not the same as having a debilitating disease.

The night had ended with a fight that wasn't resolved until the morning, and not by unconventional means.

Sex.

Or some form. Lately that'd been happening more and more. Not that I was ever complaining. A part of me wished that I could be permanently pregnant just for the amazing climaxes it brought.

Well, Dimitri gave them to me but my pregnant state seemed to make them feel ten times better.

I frowned as I grabbed my robe and slipped it on, tying the middle loosely.

_Cheer up, Rose. It's not that bad. _

_That's easy for you to say_, I said back. _Chris never has to deal with a jungle down there_.

Lissa laughed. _Just get your pregnant butt out here._

I grumbled but conceded, and joined her on the couch where she was waiting with a mug of hot chocolate. I moaned. Every morning before he left, Dimitri would make me his famous chocolate that I loved and was now craving. He'd leave it in a thermos and when I woke up two hours later, Lissa was waiting for me with it.

It'd been a routine we'd all fall into. Lissa would come and keep me company for the next five hours. It wasn't like it was a hardship on either of us. It was complete the opposite. I don't think I've ever spent that much time with her, ever, and I was enjoying it, a lot.

Life had been going great since we'd made Court our permanent home, more or less. Except for a few hiccups it'd been smooth sailing.

The first time we went in to visit an obstetrician, it hadn't gone well at all. We didn't even make it to the examination room. Dimitri and I had picked out the first office we saw and went straight in. We were glad that they were willing look at us immediately, by passing the other three women sitting in the waiting room.

That in itself should have been the warning sign that we needed. But we were so eager to see what was happening, especially after three weeks of being in the dark. So we followed Dr. Marko down the hall, without question.

He seemed like a nice man, he really did. Until he opened his mouth. I'd never rushed Dimitri out of somewhere so fast.

"How far along are you, Ms. Hathaway?" Dr. Marko asked. It didn't escape my notice, or Dimitri's, the way he was staring at my chest.

Dimitri grabbed my hand and laced his fingers with mine. He made the action so obvious it was hard not to notice.

"I think I'm 28 weeks or so." I said, answering the doctor's question.

"With twins?" He asked and I nodded. "What an amazing body. A Moroi with your build at 28 weeks with twins would be far bigger." I raised my eyebrows in absolute shock and heard Dimitri growl. Even though this man had seen that I was taken, he was still disrespectful enough to try and make a move.

Before either of us could react to his statement, Dr. Marko had his arm around my waist and his hand on my ass leading me into the room.

Never in my life had I been so fast at slapping his hand away and putting him into a choke hold, myself completely disregarding the fact that he was a Moroi and still had rights over me. I'd run out of that place with Dimitri, and brought him home so fast it wasn't funny. Then I'd spent an hour doing stuff to calm him down. Out of everything I tried nothing had calmed him down.

Nothing. I'd even gotten naked and crawled on his lap.

No response.

After that, I figured only thing I could do was give him time, so I did. I got dressed and told him I was going to lay down. He gave me a brief nod and I kissed his cheek before uncurling his fingers from the fists he had at his sides, and went to lie down. When I'd woken up, Lissa was sitting on my couch watching TV. She told me that Dimitri had gone to the gym about two minutes after I went into our room. That was two hours ago.

When Dimitri came back, I finally talked sense into him. He couldn't protect me from everything, especially disgusting pig men. He said he would certainly try. By the end of the night we had made up, with sex of course, like every time these days, and barely enough optimism to try another walk-in clinic tomorrow.

The next day wasn't any better. There were no pigs grabbing at me, but we ruled out yet another clinic when they started getting nosey. Yet again, Dr. Nabakov was eager to get us into her office. She'd actually succeeded, but we were still wary.

When she started to pry, we closed ourselves off and left. She had no right to ask Dimitri and I about our personal relationship, and what it'd been like back at St. Vladimir's.

And so it continued, and even more so at the next two clinics we tried. I didn't even know Court had so many gynecologic clinics. The third one was similar to the first in many ways, except the roles were reversed. Dr. Harrington was quick to greet us, though not for reasons of novelty and nosiness.

No, she had her sights set on something else…

And that something else was mine.

Dimitri didn't see a thing. He was blind as a bat to her obvious advances. She was quite the opposite from professional, especially when she got a little too close for my liking. Since I really couldn't do anything, I gave her a dirty glare as I led Dimitri outside and told her we wouldn't require her services.

I huffed and puffed all the way home, and Dimitri's smirk never let up. He found a jealous Rose funny apparently. We'd see how far it'd get him tonight when he tried anything.

Unfortunately, it didn't get him anywhere initially but it did eventually. My resolve cracked when he came out of the shower and into our bedroom sans a towel. He didn't even see me pounce on him.

The last clinic listed in the Court's phone book was a dead end also.

It seemed like no one could get enough of the two infamous guardians in an illegitimate relationship. We were all everyone would talk about. The stares and whispers as we walked in weren't as bad as what happened after.

We were cornered.

The receptionist led us into a room and told us Dr. Lazarev would be with us shortly. We waited

ten minutes before he came in.

I sighed, it was a him. I hope this didn't turn out like the first time because then I'd be out of options and I'd be in some hot water. I needed a doctor.

Dr. Lazarev came in holding an empty file. "Ms. Hathaway, right?"

"Yes." I said. "That's me."

"Good. I don't have the wrong room." Dr. Lazarev smiled. "So just an ultrasound today?Or a full checkup?"

"If you could do a full one, please. The last time was almost a month ago." I said.

Dr. Lazarev looked surprised. "How come? A woman at your stage shouldn't be so far in between with check-ups."

"It was kind of a hectic last couple months, with an unexpected vacation." I smiled.

Dr. Lazarev smiled back. So far, he seemed pretty nice. "So Rose, why don't we get started?"

And then it happened.

"And who is this who's accompanying you today?" Dr. Lazarev asked as he prepared the equipment.

Dimitri spoke up. "Dimitri Belikov."

Dr. Lazarev stopped and paused before turning around to look at us like he'd won the lottery. "So you're the father?"

Dimitri coughed in shock and I shifted uncomfortably. When none of us answered, Dr. Lazarev continued. Most of what he said I tuned out but I caught a few words. And it scared the shit out of me. "This is magnificent! Imagine what could happen, the scientific advances. May I draw blood from the-"

He didn't have to finish for me to understand what he meant. "No."

Dr. Lazarev looked at me, and glanced quickly at my abdomen. "But-"

I crossed my arms over my stomach protectively and felt Dimitri rest his hand on my shoulder.

"No," I repeated firmly. "There is no way you're getting blood. From me or my children. Come on, Dimitri, we'll find someone else."

I got up, picking up my stuff.

"But Ms. Hathaway, imagine-"

I got whiplash from turning so fast. My finger stabbed his chest repeatedly as I got my point across. "I don't want to fucking imagine the fucking possibilities. You, or anyone for that matter will never draw blood or do any fucking tests on my children. If I ever hear this around Court again I'll know it's you, and I wouldn't fucking hesitate. They'll find your body in a fucking ditch, you piece of shit."

I chose to forget everything that happened after that. All I know is that Dimitri told me to wait outside and he joined me ten minutes later, his face as hard as stone and his anger controlled. If I had to guess, the threatening I knew he gave Victor Dashkov had nothing on the one he just gave Dr. Lazarev.

He had been madder than mad. I'd never seen him so angry. And it scared me, especially when I felt the trembles in his hand when he laced his fingers through mine. On the walk home, and all night he didn't stop shaking. That night when he held me tightly, his head cradled against my chest, my fingers stroking his hair, he didn't fall asleep until the wee hours of the morning. As for me? I never did fall asleep.

"So have you guys found an OB/GYN yet?" Lissa asked. She'd broken me out of my thoughts.

"No," I said darkly. "We can't trust anyone."

Lissa looked hopeful. "I think I might've found one for you. I knew the trouble you guys were having so I called Dr. Olendski and she recommended someone here at Court. She assured me that you'd be in perfectly good hands with her. There's nothing to worry about."

I bit my lip skeptically. "I don't know, Liss."

"Just give her a try, Rose. She's the best obstetrician here at Court and only takes on the most elite of Moroi here. But she's willing to help you as a favor to Dr. O."

"Great. Just what I need. Lissa, what makes you think that I'd want to go see a stuffy Moroi doctor who most likely looks down on dhampirs?" I said.

"She's a really nice woman, from what Dr. O said. And Rose, she's the only one left at Court. You need to get checked up, and you can't drive all the way out to Montana to do it." Lissa reasoned.

She was right about that; I needed to get looked at, and it just wasn't reasonable for us to drive all the way to Montana to Dr. O like Dimitri had suggested. Even if Dr. O was okay with it, which she was, I wasn't going to be. I was at that stage where even sitting down felt uncomfortable.

"Okay," I conceded. "But it's not my fault if I leave if she turns out to be like Dr. Lazarev. I want a doctor, not a scientist."

Lissa squealed. "I'll go set up the appointment!"

I sighed; I was crazy for thinking it'd get easier. It was never going to be smooth sailing, or even small hiccups. We were going to be lucky if we came out of this sane and intact.

**So how was it? Go easy on me...it's the first thing I've written since November...**

**I will see you guys next update, and a million infinite thank yous to all of you who stuck with me through this rough patch! **


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